When it came to Christmas dinner at Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson, no one was too big to be mocked.

Under Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United’s Christmas feasts were not for the faint of heart, with nearly no one off-limits for some merry ridicule, including Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. Dimitar Berbatov had enough to taste after four excellent seasons at Old Trafford following his £30.75 million signing from Tottenham Hotspur in 2008.

The Bulgarian was part of a star-studded team that won two league titles with the Red Devils, scoring 56 goals in 149 games.

Fast forward a decade and things aren’t going so well for United in the post-Ferguson era, but Berbatov remembers his time in Manchester fondly and has revealed that, despite the compressed fixture list, he was a fan of playing football around Christmas time with the club’s colossus of a manager mucking in on the fun.

Speaking to Betfair, he said: “Festive football was special when Sir Alex Ferguson served you Christmas dinner.

“I enjoyed playing football around Christmas when I was in England. I don’t remember ever playing on Christmas Eve though!

“I really enjoyed this time of year and a lot of players feel the same. The family probably doesn’t like it, but at the same time, you do what you love. You try to win these games and entertain. If you do that, your holidays will be even greater.”

Berbatov rapidly became a crowd favorite with the Stretford End after becoming a hero at Tottenham, wowing supporters with his smooth abilities and beautiful touch.

During his tenure at United, the Bulgarian international would rub shoulders with some of the biggest names in global football, but as he said in his interview, even the most spectacular stars should expect a ribbing at the annual Christmas feast.

He said: “We had lots of traditions at United. Sir Alex Ferguson and the staff would get all the players together and serve us Christmas dinner. We had banter, jokes, a cracking time.

“An English Christmas dinner was a new experience for me. There was plenty of food, although it wasn’t all to my taste to be honest. You had a menu prepared by the chef. Normally it was roasted potatoes, turkey, some other vegetables and salad. We never had pigs in blankets! You ate and took the p*** out of the staff. Never the boss though!

“It was great fun and a wonderful moment to show camaraderie. It built the team spirit. I loved it. The other tradition was that, after you had your lunch with the boss and staff, the academy players put on a bit of a show.

“They would make fun of the first-team players. They’d pretend to be one of us or show us what some of us were doing on the pitch or the way we spoke – it was so fun. You needed thick skin to watch yourself being played by someone else. It was great.

“They took the p*** out of everyone: me, Wazza, Ronaldo, Rio. You need moments like this, for someone to humble you because you knew it was just fun.”

United face high-flying Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Boxing Day before hosting relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest on December 30.