Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov stretches for the ball during the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester United and Aston Villa at Old Trafford, Manchester, 01 February 2011. EPA/BGNES
Bulgaria's star striker of Manchester United has been declared top European football performer for January 2011 by Castrol Rankings.
Dimitar Berbatov (ranked 5th overall) won the Castrol EDGE Performance of the Month prize for January after he netted his third hat-trick of the Premier League season against Birmingham City, earning him 2 251 points.
Castrol Rankings, he world's first rankings based on the actual performance of every football player across Europe's top five leagues, says that with just a few months left in the season, will be looking to equal the record of most hat-tricks in a single Premier League campaign: five scored by the then-Blackburn Rovers striker Alan Shearer in the 1995-1996 season.
According to Castrol Rankings, during Manchester United's game against Birmingham City Berbatov was in scintillating form, opening the scoring after only 92 seconds. His two other goals also came from inside the box to help Manchester United keep hold of top spot. On a flawless day, he completed three out of every four passes in the final third of the pitch and was successful with all three dribbles he attempted.