Dimitar Berbatov was kidnapped as a teenager after a club tried to sign him.
The two-time Premier League winner has revealed he faced 'tough, tough times' early on in his football career.
Berbatov has revealed he was kidnapped in Bulgaria as a teenager early in his career
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Berbatov has revealed he was kidnapped in Bulgaria as a teenager early in his careerCredit: Rio Ferdinand Presents
Berbatov began his playing days with the youth team of local side Pirin Blagoevgrad in his native Bulgaria.
He later joined CSKA Sofia in 1998 before going on to star in England for Tottenham, Manchester United and Fulham.
However, it was during his time with CSKA Sofia that he was kidnapped aged just 18.
The revelation stunned Berbatov's former United teammate Rio Ferdinand, who had never heard the story before.
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Berbatov was appearing on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast when he was asked about being kidnapped and why he had never discussed it in the dressing room.
The 44-year-old replied: "Because some of the things that for you probably are going to sound unbelievable. For me, it was like nothing special happened. You were just part of life back in the day."
He also admitted: "It was tough, tough times back home. Different gangs."
As for the kidnapping, Berbatov explained: "I was really showing what I can do on the pitch, I was playing for CSKA Sofia and I was really starting to show my qualities.
"Normally, when you show your quality as a player, teams will come for you, submit offers, ask how long do you have as a contract, how much do you cost to buy, and stuff like this. But back home was more different. Back home was like, ‘Him? All right, bring him here.’
"In my case, after training, I didn’t have a car. So a teammate of mine, he was like, 'Come with me, I need to bring you to a friend of mine.'
The former United striker made the revelation in front of former team-mate Ferdinand
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The former United striker made the revelation in front of former team-mate FerdinandCredit: Rio Ferdinand Presents
"I was a bit naive, of course, and maybe I trusted him because we played in the same team. So I get into his car. He drove me to a place, to a restaurant.
"We get into the restaurant, and in the restaurant there were obviously tables. And on one table, there was a guy by himself. And on three other tables, there were big guys, like big guys, refrigerators, typical Balkan guys sitting behind him, just looking scary and just watching you.
"And the guy who brought me there was like, ‘Go over there, sit, I’ll see you later.’ And the guy was like, ‘Come here, sit down’” I’m sitting down, and it’s like, thinking to myself in my mind, ‘What is going on? What is going on? I need to call my dad, I need to call my dad.’
"And the guy started talking. He’s like, ‘Do you know what they call me?’ Now, in English, it’s going to be like, the word probably is going to be, they call me the cook.
"I’m like, all right. ‘So we know about you. We need to change the team. We want you in our team. We need to get you.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, but I’m playing in CSKA Sofia. I mean, I like it there.’ (They said) ‘We will figure that out. Don’t worry about it.’
"And the guys were sitting there and I’m just like this intimidated, of course. And I’m thinking, ‘I need to call my dad. I need to call my dad.’ So maybe two, three hours sitting there, and in the end, the guy let me call my dad.
Ferdinand was left stunned by Berbatov's story as he asked why he never told his team-mates
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Ferdinand was left stunned by Berbatov's story as he asked why he never told his team-matesCredit: Rio Ferdinand Presents
"And I’m like calling my dad, ‘I’m here. I don’t know where I am. The people around me, big guys.’ I was talking really fast, and he’s like, ‘Calm down, breathe. Like, just calm down and just breathe.’
"And I’m like, ‘What the f***? They’re going to kidnap me here and I don’t want to go, I want to go home.’ And he’s like, ‘Ok, Ok. Let me see what I can do. I’ll call the guy.’
"So eventually someone calls someone, and the big bosses of the two teams figure out a way of me not moving, just staying where I was.
"In that situation, 18 years old, seeing and knowing how things were done back then in Bulgaria, I was thinking to myself, 'this is it for me.'"
As for what he was thinking at the time, he added: "This is it for me. I need to say yes, or maybe they’re going to beat me, or I don’t know, you know.
"But eventually my dad came in and took me in the car, and I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ Makes me realise I need to grow up quick and be a man really early in my stage of life."
Berbatov won two league titles and the Club World Cup during four years at United
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Berbatov won two league titles and the Club World Cup during four years at UnitedCredit: Getty
Dimitar Berbatov and Rio Ferdinand
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Berbatov and Ferdinand played together for four years but this was the first time Ferdinand had heard about the Bulgarian's ordeal
Dimitar Berbatov's career statistics
1998-2001: CSKA Sofia - 38 goals in 65 apps
2001-06: Bayer Leverkusen - 91 goals in 202 apps
2006-08: Tottenham - 46 goals in 102 apps
2008-12: Manchester United - 56 goals in 149 apps
2012-14: Fulham - 20 goals in 54 apps
2014-15: Monaco - 18 goals in 53 apps
2015-16: PAOK - five goals in 25 apps
2017-18: Kerala Blasters - one goal in nine apps
1999-2010: Bulgaria - 48 goals in 79 caps
Honours: 2x Premier League, Club World Cup, 3x League Cup, 2x Community Shield, Bulgarian Cup
Berbatov left CSKA Sofia in 2001 to join German side Bayer Leverkusen before completing a switch to Tottenham five years later.
Across 229 Premier League appearances, he scored 94 goals for Spurs, United and Fulham.
He also found the net 48 times in 79 caps for Bulgaria to become the joint-highest scorer in their history.
Berbatov would also make 76 appearances alongside Ferdinand at Old Trafford, where he won eight trophies.
Those included two Premier League titles and the Club World Cup.
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He would ultimately retire in 2018, aged 37, following spells in France, Greece and India.
Listen to the full Rio Meets Dimitar Berbatov interview on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.