Wayne Rooney calls for Man Utd to re-sign his former team-mate to solve goalscoring woes

Former Manchester United star Danny Welbeck extended his brilliant season with a late Brighton winner against Newcastle in the FA Cup and has been urged to return to Old Trafford

Manchester United hero Wayne Rooney claims that Danny Welbeck could be the answer for the goal-shy Red Devils.

Ruben Amorim’s side are currently embroiled in an awful season as they sit 14th in the Premier League. They have scored just 33 league goals, with their highest scoring forward Joshua Zirkzee netting on just three occasions, while Rasmus Hojlund has just two league goals.

Former United striker Welbeck, now 34, has scored almost double that alone with eight strikes to his name this term – the latest coming in extra-time as Brighton saw off Newcastle in the FA Cup.

And in the aftermath of that dramatic winner, his former team-mate Rooney believes he would still do a job at Old Trafford. He said: “Danny, he’s great to play alongside and if I’m being completely honest, I’d would probably still like to see him here playing for Manchester United.

“He scored goals throughout his career, had injuries in early part of his career, but seems to have got over them and he’s having a fantastic season.”

Rooney’s assessment is similar to that of Gary Neville, who has also suggested that Welbeck would be an ideal candidate for United’s current system. He said: “He was let go too quickly at United.

“If you think about Louis van Gaal, his style of play is very precise, now Danny Welbeck wasn’t precise in his game back then, so he (Van Gaal) just let him go. He didn’t fancy him at all.

“But he’s actually perfect for how Manchester United should play. Threatening space in behind, playing off front players. This idea that he’s not good enough for Manchester United is absolutely rubbish.

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“He’s good enough to be in a pool of three or four strikers at United. For instance, Liverpool have three, four, five forward players across their forward line. They’re all of differing abilities and different types.”

Welbeck is a product of the United academy and he went on to make 142 appearances and scored 29 goals before a move to Arsenal. The striker has also earned 42 caps for England, with Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler refusing to rule out a return to the national team set-up.

“It might be possible, but it is not my decision,” Hurzeler said to ITV. “The only thing I can say is I am happy to work with him, he is a great leader, great role model and a great player.”

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