Ferguson reveals United bid

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson revealed he has made a bid for a player who would significantly improve the European champions.

Ferguson refused to name his target but the Scot is known to be keen to sign Tottenham striker Dimitar Berbatov, who has been linked with a move to Old Trafford for several weeks.

“We have made a bid for one player who would enhance us a great deal,” Ferguson said before boarding United's flight to Cape Town for their pre-season tour of Africa.

Tottenham are believed to want a 30 million pounds (37 million euros) fee for Berbatov, but Ferguson's offer is likely to be around 10 million pounds (12 million euros) less than that as he is confident Spurs boss Juande Ramos will want the cash quickly to strengthen his own squad.

Although Ferguson and chief executive David Gill will both be in Africa for the next two weeks, United still hope tie up a deal before the start of the season.

After their trip to Cape Town, United will move on to Durban and Pretoria before a flying visit to Nigeria to play Portsmouth.

They will then return home to face Espanyol, Peterborough and Juventus in a packed five-day spell before the Charity Shield clash with Portsmouth at Wembley on August 10.