Former Tottenham and Fulham star Dimitar Berbatov has revealed how watching kung-fu movies helped him improve his football playing ability.
Berbatov confirmed his retirement from football last month after last featuring for Kerala Blasters of India during the 2017/18 season.
But the Bulgarian legend is more famous for his impressive stints at Tottenham, Manchester United and Fulham during his career in the Premier League.
Berbatov was particularly famous for his incredible first touch and the ability to control even the longest of passes. In an appearance on Soccer AM on Saturday morning, he explained how he went about developing that skill from youth football to the biggest stages in the world.
The 38-year-old says he used to perfect his touch by throwing a ball in the air and trapping it time and time again as a child, but he also added why watching kung-fu movies played their part as well.
"As a kid I used to go outside where I lived and throw the ball in the air and tried to stop it with my feet. You develop that touch over the years," Berbatov explained on Soccer AM.
"I was a big admirer of movies and especially kung-fu movies. I based my football around kung-fu moves. You always have someone who is going crazy in those movies and someone who is doing slow movements. The one with the correct movements destroys the other guy.
"I would always try to do the correct movements on the football pitch and when the ball was coming to me, I could just slow the ball down with my mind when it came to me."
Berbatov added that his decision to retire was not an easy one and something he struggled with for around a year.
"I probably made the decision one year before that but it was difficult to admit to myself that the end is there," Berbatov added.
"In the end, I found the courage to say it. It was almost a compliment from the people back home wondering who I was going to play for next."
