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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger reveals agony Danny Welbeck has lived through following FA Cup defeat of Preston
When asked to describe the state of mind that Danny Welbeck found himself in last summer as he faced a second long-term rehabilitation from a second major knee operation in the space of one year, Arsène Wenger did not mince his words.
“Desperation” was Wenger’s evaluation of Welbeck’s mindset in the summer and eight months later the England international made his second big Arsenal comeback in the space of three seasons, an eight-minute substitute’s appearance against Preston North End in the FA Cup third round on Saturday. He almost marked it with a goal against the club he played on loan at seven years ago, but was denied by a fine save from goalkeeper Chris Maxwell.
Afterwards, Wenger reflected on the bad luck of one of his best transfer coups of modern times, the man who came from Manchester United aged 23 in 2014. “I think he [Welbeck] went from … certainly desperation because the setback he had was absolutely atrocious,” Wenger said. “The patience you need when you’re that age – it was terrible.
“And to miss the [2016] European Championship on top of that, after missing the start of the season. But he worked hard and certainly what happened to him will make him stronger. You have to go through it and that was a very difficult moment for him, I think he suffered a lot but I hope, touch wood, that he now will have a clean career.
“A football club is built for people who are competitive so mentally it is difficult [for those who are injured]. We let him go outside as well and mixed his time. Of course we spoke with him a lot but at the end of the day, when something like that happens to you, you have to deal with it on your own. But we tried to support him, of course.”
After a strong 2014-2015 season for his new club in which he made 38 appearances, and another six for England, Welbeck was injured in April 2015 but the decision to have surgery on his left knee was not made until September of that year. He came back in February last year and played a significant role in the team until succumbing to significant cartilage damage in his right knee in May.
A second operation down the road he is back at last and certain to be challenging for a place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the friendly against Germany in Dortmund in March and the Wembley World Cup qualifier against Lithuania that follows.
“We talked with him [Welbeck] of course,” Wenger said. “When players are injured they are a little bit out of my sight. In a way as well, at a football club, sometimes when a player has a long-term injury, sometimes it is better you get him out and away. Even if he is with other players, it is players who are injured as well. When he comes in here, he sees everybody go out there and has to stay.”
Preston took the lead through the former Aston Villa academy boy Callum Robinson before second- half goals from Aaron Ramsey and then Olivier Giroud, who has one in each of the last four games, won the tie. The home side were excellent in the first half and there was an impressive performance from midfielders Daniel Johnson and Ben Pearson, the latter, like Welbeck, a former United academy boy.
Pearson said that his side had failed to turn good first-half possession into more goals. “I think they [Arsenal] did start sloppy, they gave quite a lot of loose balls away,” he said. “We did create a lot of chances from their mistakes but we lacked that final shot or final cross.”
Wenger said that the game lived up to expectations of the FA Cup with the possibility of a replay at the Emirates right up until the moment Giroud took a back-heeled pass from Lucas Pérez into his stride and scored. “What more do you want?” Wenger said, who has won the FA Cup a record six times.
“I think it was a great tie and I came here with a team of quality. 80 per cent of the players who played today played at Bournemouth [previous Tuesday]. The rest were out.
“The first round, the third, fourth round, people are a bit more [indifferent] but after when it gets to the final stages, everybody is absolutely focused on it [the Cup]. I don’t know why people do not have a positive opinion about it. It’s more the press I think. Inside our game? I would have been devastated to go out so we are focused to compete really.
“Somebody reminded me recently I have never gone out in the third round in 20 years – that means because I care about the competition. There is a debate every year. For me there is no debate. It’s a fantastic competition.”