Man Utd urged to re-sign Danny Welbeck

Stuart Telford

• 6 Jun 2023 16:34 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand insists that Danny Welbeck would still do a job for the Red Devils after helping fire Brighton to European qualification this season.

Welbeck was an academy graduate at Old Trafford, and contributed 29 goals and 21 assists in 142 games in all competitions before being allowed to leave in a £16 million transfer to Arsenal in 2014, when Louis van Gaal was Man Utd manager.

The former England forward has never been the most prolific player, but still had 10 goal-involvements in 31 games as Brighton finished sixth in the Premier League this season, qualifying for the Europa League group stage.

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United leant overwhelmingly on the goals of Marcus Rashford this season, Welbeck's fellow academy graduate hitting 17 in the Premier League and 13 more across the Champions League, FA Cup and EFL Cup.

But Ferdinand thinks the club should have held onto Welbeck, with he and Rashford more than capable of playing together, and the Brighton man still having the requisite level despite his 32 years of age.

"Welbeck? Welbeck is good enough [right] now!" he told Vibe with Five on YouTube.

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Welbeck was one of a number of homegrown players let go by Van Gaal, with Jonny Evans and Tom Cleverley among those allowed to leave by the Dutchman at this time.

"They were the lifeblood of Manchester United, they all came through the system, all Man United boys, and that was lost as well," lamented Ferdinand. "That was a part of what the club had been built on before, people who would come through the academy were integral to everything Man United stood for.

"And they were getting rid of those players willy-nilly, I couldn't believe the club even allowed it. What they did at Man United they could've done that for the rest of their career."