Arsenal’s Flavor of the Week: Danny Welbeck
Born November 26th, 1990, Daniel Nii Tackie Mensah Welbeck was a hot commodity throughout the Manchester United youth system, hailed as another home-grown English talent that might, finally, put the starved country out of their International misery. After a couple loans at Preston North End and Sunderland, Welbeck broke through into United’s senior team in 2008, but, after five years and three managers, he’s looked more adrift than anything else.
Louis van Gaal, a man who looks like he’s running on borrowed time at Old Trafford himself, famously declared that Welbeck was not Manchester United material and, one public declaration to play striker later, he was off to North London. I tell you this only because, in all stories, it’s important to have a beginning, middle, and end. There is no worthwhile resolution or climax without knowing what came before it and certainly no character growth without the disappointments and valleys of the past.
Today, at 25 years-old, we’re firmly cemented in Welbeck’s should-be prime, but, after close to two seasons, what has he brought to this Arsenal side? We’ve got the fun, but ultimately meaningless hat-trick against Galatasaray in 2014’s Champions League Group Stage and, of course, the cold-blooded, celebratory toe-poke against United, fully enacting revenge on van Gaal in the process. But if you’re a man whose football foundations rely on statistics and getting on the scoring sheet, 2014 brought just four Premier League goals and, against Aston Villa, West Ham, West Brom, and Hull, one might argue that it was nothing to write home about.
But, at the heart of Welbeck’s game, that seems to marginalize the contributions the Englishman makes on the pitch. Perhaps, even, it may not be a stretch to declare that Welbeck’s near-year absence was sorely missed in the Arsenal side. For me, there is no harder worker, even if the results do not always prevail favorably. In fact, his famous goal at Old Trafford was, in part, thanks to his relentless chase and hustle, a desire to succeed that never fades even when his health does. Whether it’s on the wing or up top, you’re likely going to get an Alexis-level of effort with Ramsey-level finishing — but that was pre-injury Danny.
With the so-called dearth of Arsenal depth from Oxlade-Chamberlain and Walcott to Ramsey and Alexis, I’m not sure if many necessarily missed Welbeck throughout his rehab. While that sounds harsh, it’s not meant to be — it’s the same as not missing Jack Wilshere until Santi Cazorla suffers a 3-month injury. But, now that he’s here and putting in solid performance after performance, he’s no longer a luxury, he’s the water wings keeping the drowning Arsenal afloat in their haphazard Treble chase.
And that brings us to our ending, the finale, that aforementioned climax — where, if this were a blockbuster movie, we’d have finally seen the beaten-down protagonist pick himself up after the lowest period of his life; a training montage filmed in black and white with an inspirational orchestra swelling in the background. We’ve already seen a small taste of the joyous celebration that comes with a Welbeck goal, a last-gasp stunner in extra time against 10-men Leicester City in February. In what had been nothing more than a final roll of the dice by Wenger, it elevated a floundering Arsenal side forcibly back into the title race. Following another goal at Old Trafford in Arsenal’s disappointing 3-2 defeat, Welbeck has nearly sealed himself as a must-play in just under a month since first making that undeniable difference against the league leaders.
Sure, his first-touch can still be disappointing and his finishing, although maybe just with his feet these days, leave something to be desired. But that head — oh that glorious head! It’s not hard to imagine what might’ve been this season with a full-strength Welbeck, but we’re not here to create revisionist history, we’re here to write something completely new.
Yes, the Premier League hopes took a hit after losing to United and drawing Spurs, but with 9 games left and only 8 points separating the sides, crazier things have certainly happened. Welbeck is now in the unenviable position of single-handedly saving Arsenal’s campaign, but what a story it would be, no? With Walcott, Giroud, and Alexis all struggling and new injuries to Ramsey, Mertesacker, and other crucial defenders, Welbeck has the opportunity to take their topsy-turvy campaign by the horns and paint his own storybook ending.
Imagine that: the teenage phenom from Manchester, now in North London, with the chance to invent his own legacy, build his own statue, and cement himself well-within the English footballing culture. A man once cast off from the team he grew up idolizing can enter Arsenal folklore by continuing his current form. All he has to do is turn around this present nosedive of an Arsenal campaign to finish this story from beginning to end — but that’s not the hard part:
Arsène just has to play him.
