Danny Welbeck has gained a reputation for being Manchester United's kryptonite. The English striker has had his up and downs in his career since his departure from Manchester United in 2014. The striker joined Arsenal in 2014 and didn't live up to expectations, often suffering from injuries, before transferring to Watford in 2019.
Welbeck has found new life late in his career at Brighton, and continues to start for the club despite being 35 years of age. It is also at Brighton that he has gained a habit of haunting United, continuing to score against his former club. He now has 6 goals against his boyhood team, the most of any former United player.
Welbeck struck again against his old club on Sunday, scoring the deciding goal in Brighton's 2-1 win at Old Trafford, knocking United out of the FA Cup in the 3rd round. It was a humiliating day at Old Trafford, not just because it all but buried any hope that remained for United this season, but because United were buried by one of their own.
Welbeck was a member of Manchester United's academy since he was 11 years old. He rose through the ranks, and lived the dream of any boyhood United fan. Then, when results waned, he was quickly moved on. It's become a common pattern for players from United's academy, and it's only getting worse.
Welbeck's success after United sale is part of a disturbing trend
Players like Marcus Rashford, James Garner, Scott McTominay and Antony Elanga also played in United's academy, and made their debuts in the first team. They were then all sold on when they were deemed to no longer be of use.
The allure of selling academy prospects has only become stronger since Premier League Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) have been brought in: as academy graduates don't come with any cost, their sales represent pure profit on club balance sheets.
With the limits of PSR becoming so important to Premier League clubs as they operate on the edge of the legal limits, selling academy players becomes an easy and efficient way to balance the books.
The sale of academy players has become a necessary evil in modern football. Aston Villa, for example, had to sell Jacob Ramsey to Newcastle last summer in order to not break PSR and incur a points deduction. But it shouldn't be this way for Manchester United.
United are a team built on youth. It is intertwined with United's very identity. The Busby Babes and the Class of '92 are central to United's identity, and the sale of academy players go directly against that.
Sometimes the sale of an academy player is necessary. Some players have been shipped out of Old Trafford out of necessity. Alejandro Garnacho is a good example of a player who deserved to be sold, given his performances and his behaviour. But it should only be done as a last resort.
This kind of attitude to academy players resulted in United almost letting go of Kobbie Mainoo this summer. Kobbie Mainoo represents the gateway that academy prospects still have into the first-team. It's a pathway that has continued to collapse in the past few years, but Mainoo proves it is still possible.
Danny Welbeck struggled in his twilight years at Old Trafford. But now he has transformed into a uber-competant striker at a solid Premier League team. Quite frankly, Man United would take him back in a heartbeat. Or maybe they should never have sold him.
Welbeck is one of many who continues to prove Man United wrong. You can imagine he gains extra satisfaction out of scoring against United, and showing them what they missed out on. United need to learn from their mistakes.
Many of United's finest seasons came from a trust in youth. The modern game of football, and the structure currently in place at United, seems to actively discourage it. If United don't want to one day be haunted by Kobbie Mainoo, or Shea Lacey, or any other academy graduate that they expelled from the club, they need to change now.