Manchester United has struggled on the road with only three victories and eight ties in league play. Few consider it equal to the 1998-99 squad, which won the Premier League, the F.A. Cup tournament and the European Champions League. Yet it possesses resilience and a flair for the dramatic comeback, as evidenced by last week’s 3-2 victory at Blackpool in which Manchester United trailed, 2-0, until the 72nd minute.

“You know at some point we’re going to do something,” Manager Alex Ferguson said after the victory.

That night, and frequently this season, Manchester United was rescued by forward Dimitar Berbatov, who can be as playful as a seal with the ball and leads the league with 19 goals  having scored 5 in one match and hat tricks in two others. He is ascendant after being called Berbaflop in the past, criticized because he played with a detached elegance that did not always coincide with the Premier League’s demand for industry and speed and muscle.

Given his pallid features and widow’s peak, Berbatov was also derided as a Count Dracula lookalike. As this season opened, The Sun newspaper wrote that Berbatov had “something of the night” about him. The tabloid noted that he had struggled to meet expectations after arriving from Tottenham in 2008 on a transfer fee of $49 million, saying Berbatov had found the burden “as easy to handle as a crucifix.”

Never mind that the comment was pitiless. It was also geographically challenged. Berbatov, 30, happens to be from Bulgaria, while the Dracula myth is centered in the Transylvania region of Romania.

“People are always quick to point their finger at a foreigner,” said Zuckernain Abbas, 22, a Manchester United fan. “Now he is our savior. It shows you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.”

Ferguson, too, has defended Berbatov, saying: “It’s an old habit when players who come to United and they’re not scoring three goals a game or making 50 passes; they get slaughtered. You can’t dispute the man’s ability  he’s a genius at times.”