Dimitar Berbatov's brilliant moment

Saturday's game against Everton shown on Sky television produced a wonderful picture of Berbatov. It typifies what I imagine to be the man. He's a player of great skill that I admire. He also cost Man U more than 30 million pounds. However, he is not famous for running about a lot. He is just not a Wayne Rooney breasting through tides of opposition covering acres of ground.

Berbatov scored the first goal of the match and the only one scored by his team in their 3-1 defeat. (See my blog below, same date). It was a volley that came to him from the right to his position just outside the 5-yard box with players all around him. He touched it once with the top of his foot and then hit a rising volley into the top of the netting.  It was an elegant moment and a brilliant goal.

However, the wonderful picture of Berbatov that I referred to in the first sentence was not the vision of his goal, it was later, just before the kick-off, second half. There was some brief delay and the camera settled brilliantly on Berbatov. While waiting he was carefully smoothing his shorts where they were slightly rucked. There is a badge on these shorts just above the hem on the right leg and it means that they are not quite straight enough. For some players!

Great Players make Great Games - in Double Quick Time

On Sunday 27th December, 2009, I slept through most of the Arsenal v Aston Villa match on television, the 3rd and 4th teams in the English Premier League. I woke up to a 0-0 score line with Fabregas just starting as a sub in the second half. What followed was the best 28 minutes I have seen this season and maybe ever. He scored from a devastating free kick, curling it over the line of opponents into the far side of the goal which they were defending. He followed this by masterminding continuous attacks on the Villa goal and ended by a dash into space to score his second. In doing this he aggravated the hamstring injury, the reason for his starting on the bench. He was then substituted but had already done enough to be the Man of the Match and the master of his trade in an appearance lasting less than half an hour.
The Sky Television pundit Jamie Redknapp whose garrulous comments often contain some gems - probably overheard from his Dad, Harry, the Tottenham manager - gave me the first part of the title of this piece.

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• Fabregas scores twice as Arsenal beats Aston Villa (seattletimes.nwsource.com)