Ferguson has been tracking Berbatov for some time

Sir Alex Ferguson expects to prise striker Dimitar Berbatov from Tottenham by the end of the summer.

Reports have suggested the Manchester United boss has made a £22m bid for the 27-year-old but that Spurs want more.

"We have made Tottenham an offer on Berbatov and we have good expectations that this deal will go through," Ferguson told The Sun newspaper.

"Berbatov has been impressive for a long time and he would be a great addition to our attack."

Barcelona have also shown an interest in the Bulgarian following the exit of Ronaldinho to AC Milan and with Samuel Eto'o also set to leave but Ferguson is happy to bide his time over a player who scored 23 goals for Tottenham last season.

Speaking at the start of the club's pre-season tour of South Africa, the Scot said: "I think time will work for us more than against us.

"We will not stress this situation. We are hoping to have a constructive conversation with Tottenham in the near future."

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Ferguson has also insisted any deal for Berbatov would not mean winger Cristiano Ronaldo moving to Real Madrid.

"We will handle the situation in the best manner," he added.

According to Portuguese television station RTP, Ferguson met Ronaldo in Lisbon on Monday in a bid to persuade the player that his future lies at Old Trafford but that was on the back of reports suggesting the United manager was unable to fit such a meeting into his busy schedule.

Portugal star Ronaldo was ruled out of the trip to South Africa because he had surgery on an ankle problem earlier this month and faces up to 12 weeks on the sidelines.

Meanwhile, Ferguson is confident that Owen Hargreaves will be fit for the start of the season in August, despite the United midfielder suffering a recurrence of the tendinitis problem that first surfaced at the start of the last campaign.

Hargreaves is also sitting out the pre-season tour but Ferguson insisted: "By the time we come back from South Africa, Owen should be okay.

"We have certainly not written him off for the start of the season. He will have a series of injections in his knee but I am sure he will be fine."