Wenger glee as Welbeck proves a point to United
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PLAYERS are often reluctant to celebrate goals they score against a former club but Danny Welbeck clearly enjoyed netting Arsenal’s winner at Manchester United on Monday.
The England striker punished Antonio Valencia’s shocking back pass just past the hour in the FA Cup quarterfinal at Old Trafford to seal a 2-1 win for the Gunners.
His reaction was a mixture of joy, relief and a release of any pent up feeling of injustice at being cast off by United boss Louis van Gaal last summer.
Welbeck was applauded by most of the home fans when he was substituted in the 74th minute. The 24-year-old insisted, however, it had not been a case of claiming revenge. “Manchester United is a club that means so much to me,” Welbeck said, in quotes published by the BBC yesterday. “I’m a fan and it’s hard to knock them out.”
Welbeck began his Arsenal career in style and a hat-trick in a Champions League game against Galatasaray in October looked set to light the blue touchpaper. But the goals have dried up, partly because of injuries, and his winner against United was only his fourth goal for the club since he destroyed the Turkish side.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger selected Welbeck ahead of Olivier Giroud for the trip to United and his faith was repaid as the 16-million pound (US$24.17 million) signing put Arsenal into the last four where it will face either Reading or Bradford City.
Aston Villa, which beat West Bromwich Albion 2-0, was drawn against the winner of the replay between Liverpool and second-tier Blackburn.
“We want all to do well when we play against our former club to show we are great players but it is not easy to deal with the mental aspect of it,” Wenger told a news conference.
“He focused just on his game and played football the way he wanted to. He has showed mental strength. He wants to win, he is a team player. He is intelligent. He is a great talent and has done extremely well for the national team also.”
Arsenal had not beaten United since May 2011 and had suffered two FA Cup defeats against its fellow 11-time winner since beating Alex Ferguson’s side on penalties in the 2005 final in Cardiff.
Wayne Rooney’s diving header in the 29th minute canceled out Nacho Monreal’s well-worked opener four minutes earlier for the titleholder.
Angel Di Maria’s 77th-minute sending-off for two yellow cards — one for diving and the other moments later for tugging the referee’s shirt in protest — completed a disappointing evening for United, which is almost sure to go without a trophy for the second straight season.
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