Danny Welbeck
Daniel Nii Tackie Mensah Welbeck is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Brighton & Hove Albion.
Welbeck made his way through the youth teams at Manchester United before making his senior debut in 2008 and scoring in the process. He was with United when they won the 2008–09 League Cup and the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup before being sent on loan spells with Preston North End and Sunderland. From the 2011–12 season, Welbeck was a regular figure in the Manchester United first team. He was transferred to Arsenal in September 2014 for a £16 million fee. In August 2019, Welbeck joined Watford, following his release by Arsenal at the end of the previous season, before joining Brighton & Hove Albion a year later. He has since become Brighton's all-time top scorer in the Premier League.
Welbeck made his debut for the England national team in March 2011 in a 1–1 friendly draw against Ghana. He scored his first senior international goal on 2 June 2012, the only goal in a friendly victory over Belgium. Welbeck has gone on to represent England at UEFA Euro 2012, the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup, earning 42 caps.
Early life
Welbeck was born on 26 November 1990 in Manchester to Ghanaian parents and was raised in the Longsight area of the city.Club career
Manchester United
Welbeck was first spotted by Manchester United as a six-year-old. At eight years old, he impressed with local team Fletcher Moss Rangers, and was finally picked up by the Manchester United youth academy. He joined United during the 2005–06 season, making his debut for the club's under-18 team on 8 April 2006 in a league match against Sunderland. He then came on as a substitute in the next match, before being named as an unused substitute in the team's last two matches of the season. The following season, he made a further 28 appearances for the under-18s, scoring nine goals, including eight appearances and one goal in the FA Youth Cup, in which he helped the team to reach the final, despite being two years younger than some of the other players. He was not handicapped despite suffering from Osgood–Schlatter disease, and was making rapid progress, despite his pneumonia.Welbeck signed his first trainee contract in July 2007, and started the 2007–08 season in the under-18 team, but was quickly promoted to the reserve team, making a number of substitute appearances. Then, in January 2008, he was called up to the first team for the trip to Saudi Arabia to play Al-Hilal in Sami Al-Jaber's testimonial match. Welbeck made his debut in that match on 21 January 2008, coming on as a 65th-minute substitute for Anderson. Welbeck had the chance to snatch a draw for United when he was brought down in the penalty area in the final minute, but he put the penalty kick over the bar.
Through that he joined the first-team squad partway through the 2007–08 season, and made his competitive debut for the Manchester United first team on 23 September 2008, starting up front in a 3–1 home win against Middlesbrough in the League Cup Third Round. Welbeck's Premier League debut was made on 15 November 2008, coming on as a 63rd-minute substitute for Park Ji-sung against Stoke City. He marked his debut with a curling 30-yard shot into the top right corner for United's fourth goal in a 5–0 win. He started in the 2009 League Cup Final at Wembley Stadium on 1 March 2009, in which United beat Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 on penalties after a 0–0 extra-time draw.
On 23 September 2009, Welbeck scored his first goal of the 2009–10 season, the only one of the match in the League Cup Third Round against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Welbeck made his UEFA Champions League debut in a 1–0 home defeat to Beşiktaş in November 2009. The following month he signed a new contract, keeping him at Manchester United until 2013.
On 25 January 2010, Welbeck became Alex Ferguson's son Darren Ferguson's first signing as Preston North End manager since he took charge earlier in the month, signing on loan for the remainder of the 2009–10 season. As part of his recovery, he took part in a training session at Manchester United's training ground, but his knee swelled up again. The injury required surgery and Welbeck's loan was cut short on 16 March so that he could return to Manchester United for the operation.
On 12 August 2010, Welbeck became Steve Bruce's eighth summer signing after Sunderland signed the United striker on loan for the duration of the 2010–11 season. His debut for Sunderland came on 14 August as an 83rd-minute substitute for Darren Bent in a 2–2 home draw against Birmingham City. On 14 November, Welbeck scored his first Sunderland goal as he completed the scoring in a 3–0 away victory over Chelsea, rounding off what was described as an "impressive individual performance". Eight days later, Welbeck scored his first home goals for Sunderland, striking twice in a 2–2 draw with Everton.
Welbeck scored the only goal as Sunderland beat Bolton Wanderers on 18 December 2010, and also scored on 1 January 2011 as Sunderland defeated Blackburn Rovers 3–0. His form for Sunderland prompted widespread calls for an England call up, but on 5 January, he picked up a hamstring injury in a victory at Aston Villa, ruling him out for eight weeks. He made his return on 5 March 2011, in a 0–0 draw away to Arsenal, coming on as a substitute for Steed Malbranque in the 68th minute; he almost scored a late goal that would have won the match for Sunderland in the 83rd minute, but his shot was saved by Wojciech Szczęsny. He picked up an injury in the 4–2 home win over Wigan Athletic on 23 April, and he returned to Manchester United for treatment for the remainder of the season.
Welbeck was given a starting berth in the 2011 FA Community Shield match at Wembley Stadium on 7 August 2011. United won the match 3–2, having trailed rivals Manchester City 2–0 at half time. He started alongside Wayne Rooney in the first league match of the 2011–12 Premier League season away to West Bromwich Albion; he was substituted in the 65th minute, to be replaced by Dimitar Berbatov. On 22 August, Welbeck scored the opening goal of the match against Tottenham Hotspur, heading in a cross from Tom Cleverley from nine yards to score in the 61st minute. He then provided an assist for Anderson in the 76th minute to make the score 2–0 before being substituted. The match ended in a 3–0 win for United. Welbeck opened the scoring in an eventual 8–2 win over Arsenal. From outside the box, Anderson chipped the ball into Welbeck and he headed it over Wojciech Szczęsny. However, Welbeck had to leave the field early with a pulled hamstring which, consequently, ruled him out for several weeks.
Welbeck scored twice in a Champions League group match against Basel on 27 September; the match ended 3–3. Welbeck scored again in the next match, a 2–0 home win over Norwich City, after coming on as a second-half substitute. He exchanged passes with Park Ji-sung before sweeping low into the bottom corner to seal the win. On 21 December 2011, Welbeck opened the scoring at Craven Cottage in a 5–0 win against Fulham. He met Nani's cross and steered the ball in with his left foot. On 8 January 2012, Welbeck scored the second goal in a 3–2 away victory against Manchester City at the City of Manchester Stadium in the FA Cup third round. Patrice Evra made a half-cleared cross, which Welbeck volleyed into Costel Pantilimon's bottom corner. On 14 January, it was reported that Welbeck would sign a long-term contract at Old Trafford. On 22 January, Welbeck scored the winning goal in the 81st minute in a 2–1 away victory at the Emirates Stadium over Arsenal—his third goal in three matches. His impressive performances throughout the 2011–12 campaign earned him a place on the shortlist for the 2012 PFA Young Player of the Year Award, which was won by Tottenham Hotspur defender Kyle Walker.
Welbeck started the first match of the season against Everton on 20 August 2012, which ended a 1–0 defeat. He was substituted for the club's new signing, Robin van Persie. On 22 August 2012, Welbeck signed a new four-year contract with Manchester United stating that playing for Manchester United is all he ever wanted. He scored his first goal of the season on 20 October, in a 4–2 win at home to Stoke City. On 13 February 2013, Welbeck scored a vital goal in a 1–1 draw against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, heading in from a Wayne Rooney corner, his first goal in almost four months. Welbeck's goal made him the first Englishman to score for a Premier League team at the Bernabéu since Leeds United's Alan Smith in 2001. He ended the season with a total of two goals in 40 appearances.
Welbeck started for United in their 2–0 win over Wigan Athletic in the 2013 FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium on 11 August. He scored on the opening day of the Premier League season, scoring twice in a 4–1 win against Swansea City in new manager David Moyes' first league match as Manchester United manager. On 2 October 2013, he scored his only UEFA Champions League goal of the season in a 1–1 draw with Shakhtar Donetsk at the Donbas Arena.
Between December 2013 and January 2014, Welbeck scored six goals in six Premier League matches. On 15 December, he scored twice in a 3–0 win against Aston Villa at Villa Park. On 21 December, he scored his first goal at Old Trafford since October 2012 in a 3–1 win over West Ham United. On 28 December, he scored the only goal in United's win at Norwich City. He then scored in home matches against Tottenham Hotspur and Swansea City in January 2014.
On 9 March, Welbeck scored his tenth goal of the season in a 3–0 win at West Bromwich Albion. At the end of the season, Welbeck declared his intention to leave United to play as a striker elsewhere after what he described as his unhappiest season, stating: "I've been playing on the left for a while and it's got to the time when I want to stake a place up front".