Spurs report United, Reds over striker bids

LONDON, England (AP) -- Tottenham have complained to the Premier League about the "disgraceful" conduct of English rivals Manchester United and Liverpool in trying to sign strikers Dimitar Berbatov and Robbie Keane.

In a strongly-worded statement, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy branded United manager Alex Ferguson "hypocritical" over his attempts to lure Berbatov to Old Trafford despite the Scot having complained to FIFA about Real Madrid's pursuit of winger Cristiano Ronaldo.

Levy warned both clubs that his under-contract strikers were not for sale, but it did not stop Ferguson from saying he was confident of signing Berbatov or Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez calling Keane a target.

"Both clubs arrogantly chose to ignore this request and we now have evidence that both clubs have systematically been working to prize the players away from us, outside of PL rules of conduct," Levy said Friday.

"Our subsequent position has been severely compromised by both clubs making their intentions widely known and indeed making contact with the players and their agents, without the club's permission."

Levy said he had not accepted offers for either Berbatov or Keane, but added that both now wish to leave.

"When a player's head is turned and their commitment is absent, particularly when they occupy key positions such as that of striker, they become a negative influence in a team," he said.

Berbatov, who joined Tottenham from Bayer Leverkusen in 2006 in a four-year deal, scored 23 goals in 52 appearances last season, including a penalty kick in Spurs' 2-1 win over Chelsea in the League Cup final.

United have been trying to buy the Bulgaria international for more than a year in breach of Premier League rules, Levy said.

Ferguson said Friday that he would be "a great addition to our attack."

"Today's public comments by Manchester United's manager, announcing that he has made an offer for Dimitar and is confident that the deal will go through with time working in their favor, is a blatant example of sheer arrogance and interference with one of our players," Levy said.

"It is also probably one of the worst offenses by any manager in the Premier League to date and is unbelievably hypocritical given his recent comments in respect of Cristiano Ronaldo and Real Madrid."

United responded by saying the Premier League champions will "cooperate with the Premier League as necessary."

Keane has been a key component in the Spurs team since joining in 2002 after stints at Inter Milan and Leeds.

The Ireland captain has assumed the role at White Hart Lane during Ledley King's long injury layoff and is under contract until 2012.

Meanwhile, Tottenham's bid for England winger David Bentley has been rejected by Blackburn.

An earlier bid by Aston Villa was also turned down by Blackburn chairman John Williams.

"We have had bids from two clubs," Williams said. "One came in when Mark Hughes was manager, the other was fairly recent. They have both been rejected."

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