Manchester United’s £16m transfer mistake could be about to come back to haunt them

Man United sold Danny Welbeck to Arsenal for £16m in the 2014 summer transfer window.

Manchester United have made their fair share of transfer mistakes. Some transfer decisions were proven to be mistakes very quickly, while others have taken a little longer to be filed in the ‘error’ category; Danny Welbeck falls into the latter.

Welbeck had scored 29 goals for United in 142 appearances for the club when he was sold, aged 23, for £16million. The striker’s record at the Emirates Stadium was slightly better, bagging 32 goals in 126 appearances, but there was no sign that Welbeck would become as reliable in the Premier League as he has done.

Moving to Brighton in 2020, the now 34-year-old has managed to reinvigorate his career.

Welbeck seems to be getting better with age and has goals tally has been impressive despite him not starting every game for the Seagulls. Last season was Welbeck’s best goalscoring Premier League campaign as he reached ten goals in 30 top flight appearances.

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But it is not just the goals that have been impressive, his performances for the team have shone through too. He is strong, a handful for defenders and is still managing to stretch the backline even though he is now one of the veterans in the division.

On Saturday, Welbeck managed to steal the headlines once again as he scored twice in a 2-1 win over Newcastle at the Amex Stadium. He now has four in eight matches for Brighton and next in his sights is United.

Since leaving the club, Welbeck has enjoyed his reunions with the Reds. On his first game back at Old Trafford in the 2015/16 season he scored in a 3-2 defeat and he bagged another against them in the following campaign, this time at the Emirates Stadium.

Since joining Brighton, Welbeck has managed three goals against United, including last season when the Seagulls won 2-1 at the Amex. The forward has shown since moving on from Old Trafford that he may never be a prolific scorer in the Premier League but he is always capable of chipping in and linking up play, and someone who could work perfectly in today’s squad with Benjamin Sesko.

Ruben Amorim will hope that United’s £16m mistake does not come back to haunt them again.

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