BREAKING NEWS: “I’m scared of what Man United will become if they sign him, I don’t want him to join them”: Pep Guardiola says he’s scared of what Man United will become if they sign the player they are about to sign.
PEP GUARDIOLA IS REALLY SCARED OF WHAT MAN UNITED MIGHT BECOME IF THEY SIGN THE PLAYER THAT HAVE AGREED TO SIGN.
The prodigal son returns.
Or, in the case of Danny Welbeck, the academy graduate who should never have been sold returns to inflict more misery on his boyhood side – but that isn’t quite as catchy.
What is certainly a catch-22 for Manchester United fans, however, is their ex-striker – a player still widely beloved at the club – is enjoying the best form of his career on the south coast with Brighton & Hove Albion. But the 35-year-old consistently reserves his most decisive moments in front of goal for when he faces his former team, breaking the hearts of fans who used to chant his name in the process.
INEOS on the ropes
The Red Devils crashed out of the FA Cup yesterday at the hands of Brighton; or, more accurately, the left foot of Welbeck, who produced a stunning winner to deliver his side a 2-1 win under the bright lights of Old Trafford.
The third round tie shone a harsh spotlight on United’s rulers, who reached the bombshell decision to sack Ruben Amorim, along with his entire coaching staff, last week.
Earlier in the season, Sir Jim Ratcliffe claimed the Portuguese coach needed “three years” to show he was the right man to lead the Red Devils back to the summit of English football. Three months later, the British billionaire reneged on this promise, swinging his axe on Amorim’s tumultuous tenure – the latest in a long line of chaotic decisions by INEOS.
Under-18s coach Darren Fletcher has taken temporary charge of the senior side, overseeing the FA Cup exit and a 2-2 draw with Burnley in the Premier League. But a permanent caretaker is expected to be appointed to lead United until the end of the season, with Michael Carrick the frontrunner for the role.
A long-term replacement for Amorim will then be sourced over the summer, when the pool of candidates will grow, with Thomas Tuchel and Oliver Glasner considered two of the leading targets.
One of the major points of conflict between the former Sporting manager and his employers in Manchester was his level of influence over the football operation.
It’s believed Amorim disagreed with INEOS over recruitment decisions in the summer, which came to a head again in December after a failed pursuit of AFC Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo, who rebuffed United’s advances in favour of Manchester City.
Another source of conflict was Benjamin Sesko – the Slovenian striker signed for £74 million from RB Leipzig. Amorim is understood to have preferred a move for Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins, as he considered the experienced Englishman a more reliable source of goals.
However, Watkins turns 31 next season and INEOS have shifted recruitment towards a model focusing on younger signings. The pursuit of 23-year-old goalkeeper Senne Lammens over Watkins’ teammate, Emiliano Martinez, was another decision Amorim rejected, but was overruled by the recruitment department.
But was this the right decision? Well, yes and no.
Amorim’s preference for more experience up front was correct; but his disapproval of Sesko – one of Europe’s best young strikers – was wrong. Equally, INEOS insisting on the 6’5 Slovenia international was the right decision, but to leave him supported by only Joshua Zirkzee was not.
The best decision in the summer would have been to sign Sesko alongside a more battle-hardened Premier League forward, such as Watkins, at the expense of the wildly ineffective striking partnership of Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund.
Watkins would have cost in excess of £60m, however, given his importance to Aston Villa and Unai Emery, making him an unworkable target within the club’s budget.
But what about a fellow English forward with a track record of goals in the Premier League, playing at a smaller club with only twelve months left on his contract, who knows Old Trafford inside out, and would be happy to play a rotational role in the squad?
Well, if someone like that existed, he would be a slam dunk for United to sign, or so you’d think.
Oh Danny Boy
United “seriously considered” a deal for Welbeck in the summer, after the Brighton centre-forward returned 10 goals and four assists in 30 Premier League appearances last season. For context, Zirkzee and Hojlund combined for just seven goals in the league.
Welbeck’s effect at the Amex Stadium extends beyond his predatory instincts in the opposition box, however.
The Seagulls consider the 35-year-old a “teacher on the pitch” and an outstanding influence off it. He is a model professional who takes excellent care of his body, after a career struggling with injury. There are never complaints about being rotated, nor any issues with youngsters – Brighton’s model relies upon developing young talent to be sold for big fees – being given minutes in his place.
In short, Welbeck is the perfect squad player and a reliable source of goals, who is ageing like the finest of wines. It made complete sense, therefore, for INEOS to identify their ex-striker as an option last summer.
The fact that Welbeck had scored seven times against United since leaving Old Trafford was reason alone to bring him back, if only to prevent him – as he did last night, with his eighth strike – from inflicting more damage on his former employers.
But, sadly, they did not follow through on their interest, instead pivoting towards Sesko after a failed pursuit of Ipswich Town frontman Liam Delap. The fact that Sesko has four league goals this season, and Zirkzee only two, while Welbeck has scored nine times, further compounds this incorrect decision.
The Manchester native, who joined the Red Devils’ academy as an eight-year-old, is enjoying a brilliant campaign, illustrated by his thunderous finish last night. He even has an outside chance of making the England squad for the World Cup, with Harry Kane the only Englishman outscoring him this season.
Welbeck’s contract with Brighton expires at the end of the season, meaning he is able to talk to clubs about a free transfer in the summer window. United must take advantage of this fact and launch a raid to return him to Old Trafford in this window, arming the new caretaker manager with an experienced striker to complement, rather than hinder, Sesko – as Zirkzee is doing.
AS Roma are understood to be interested in Zirkzee. But a deal is proving difficult, with United reluctant to sanction any departures in January, fearful of weakening an already fragile squad. This is a mistake, however, because the the 24-year-old is a striker only in name; a false nine in the truest sense of the word.
Zirkzee is an anomaly of a footballer. Standing 6’4 with an imposing frame, he possesses a brilliant first touch and deceptively good dribbling. He should, in theory, be capable of providing brain and brawn as a frontman, combining silk with steel to penetrate through defences, as he did in Italy with Bologna, winning Serie A’s Young Player of the Year award the season before joining United.
But theory rarely translates to practice in football, particularly at the Theatre of Dreams, which has morphed into a nightmare for the sinking Dutchman.
This season, Zirkzee has two goals in all competitions. Last year, he returned six. He is lackadaisical and lifeless out of possession, incapable of using his size or strength effectively, and offers nowhere near enough creativity to justify his lack of clinical finishing.
Given United paid £35.4 million for his services, he has cost the club just under £4.5m a goal since being signed. His wages are also believed to be around £100,000 a week. Welbeck, by comparison, takes home around £60,000 a week at the Amex.
It makes sense from an economic perspective to let Zirkzee join Roma, and sign Welbeck on a cheap deal, given his expiring contract, in his place. From a footballing lens, it’s a no-brainer, with the club’s greatest ever goal scorer throwing his full weight behind the idea.
Zirkzee gets a chance to reinvent himself in the league where he first made his name. Sesko gets a reliable mentor to help him develop as a centre-forward, rather than someone to stand in his way. United’s new manager gets a model professional with a wealth of experience to add to a dressing room in desperate need of wiser heads. And Welbeck gets the chance to enter the swansong of his career at his boyhood club.
Heck, even Brighton will get a small transfer fee for a 35-year-old who is set to leave the south coast for free in six months’ time. It’s a win win, which is exceedingly rare in professional sport, even more so for a club who has endured as many losses as the Red Devils recently, on and off the pitch.
It’s time for the prodigal son to return.
