Danny Welbeck - SAFC Blog

Danny Welbeck: a Manchester United treasure we’d love to be ours

June 7, 2011 by Colin Randall

Throughout the past season, Pete Sixsmith contributed appraisals of Danny Welbeck’s progress to a Manchester United site Stretford End Arising*. This, again at the site’s request, is his assessment of Welbeck over the season as a whole …

In the late 1960s, when I was idling my time away in the Sixth Form at Bishop Auckland Grammar School (Stan Laurel had attended in the earlier days of the century), there was a very popular disc by a beat combo known as The Scaffold. Entitled Thank You Very Much, the three chirpy Scousers who made up the group went through a list of things that they wanted to say, er, TYVM for.

As Sunderland supporters, we can say “Thank You Very Much For Danny Welbeck, Particularly For Those Months Either Side Of Christmas When He Was Brilliant” and United fans can say to Sunderland “Thank You Very Much For Looking After Danny Welbeck And Turning Him Into An International Player”. A true mutual admiration society.

Manchester United v Barcelona: rooting for ‘worst United side in years’

May 27, 2011 by Colin Randall

Diplomatic relations were established between Salut! Sunderland and Republik of Mancunia a couple of seasons ago. Scott the Red is the republik’s head of state and comes here from time to time to offer his thoughts or ask for ours on SAFC/United-related matters. Who better to preview the Champions’ League Final from a United perspective? And while we’re on, congrats are in order: Scott’s site came second in the EPL Talk blog-of-the-year awards (M Salut prefers to draw a veil over our final position). He’s a bit pessimistic about tomorrow night but loyally predicts a United win all the same …

Would Danny Welbeck really want to return to Manchester United?

April 2, 2011 by Colin Randall

Periodically, Pete Sixsmith offers the Manchester United fans’ site Stretford End Arising an update on how Danny Welbeck is doing for Sunderland. Perhaps he should aid our chances of getting Danny permanently by always replying that he’s absolute garbage. Here, though, is his latest mid-term report …

So, after a long lay off in Manchester, we got Danny back into action. He came on as a second half sub at Ashburton Grove and almost scored a cracking goal. Had it gone in, Arsene’s face would have been a picture; not only beaten by one of the “little teams”, but through a goal by a Manchester United player. I think he would have ended up like any Spinal Tap drummer and spontaneously combusted.

The pride of England, Ghana and Sunderland – and a dodgy French strip

March 30, 2011 by Colin Randall

… in which we praise the Sunderland men who graced the Wembley turf last night and introduce you to a new team strip to end arguments over our own …

Before anything else, Salut! Sunderland salutes all the SAFC players who represented their countries in the England v Ghana friendly last night. In particular, bravo Asamoah Gyan for an equaliser to cap what was, by all accounts, an excellent game and Danny Welbeck for making his first England appearance.

At this distance – M Salut is in France – you have to rely on the reports of others.

One Sunderland supporter with Wembley tickets wondered what the England fans in the family enclosure made of his celebration of Gyan’s goal. Another sent a celebratory e-mail: “Gerrin … more of that on Saturday please.”

A third, thinking also of a certain Mr Carroll, added: “Can’t say I’ve enjoyed an England goal less and cheered the opposition scoring more than tonight. Can we have that every week please Gyan!”

While all this was going on, our own Pete Sixsmith sent a text telling me Fraizer Campbell had also scored – on his return from injury in a 1-1 draw for the Reserves v WBA. There’ll be more on that, I imagine, from Pete himself a little later, but Campbell’s recovery and confidence-boosting goal can only be good for the club.

Danny Welbeck’s England chance is Sunderland’s glory, not Manchester United’s

March 29, 2011 by Colin Randall

A Sunderland supporter has commented elsewhere today on his unease at having three first-team players in action for Ghana tonight, with an important Premier game coming up, against a seriously below strength England.

“Is it just me, or should we be worried that we have three of our lads playing against a bunch of England B players hoping to make a name for
themselves and actually trying?” was his question, and I knew exactly what he meant.

Danny Welbeck’s cracking goal for the England Under 21s

March 24, 2011 by Colin Randall

One goal apiece for Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson in tonight’s 4-0 thrashing by England Under 21s of Denmark in Viborg. There are clips of both Danny’s excellent strike and Jordan’s impressive individualistic goal and, for as long they last, we have them …

This a treat. We all know how good Danny Welbeck is. His superb display at Chelsea spoke volumes for his talents. His control and shot deserved to clinch an improbable winner at the Emirates. And we’ve seen how well he can perform at Under 21 international level. Prepare to see it again.

Time to stop fearing Arsenal and welcome back Welbeck

March 4, 2011 by Colin Randall

The Emirates build-up, from Salut! Sunderland‘s viewpoint, is done.

We’ve run two completely different but equally compelling Q&A interviews with Arsenal supporters, one a Gooner and the other emphatically not, and Pete Sixsmith has reminded us all of Paul Danson’s late bid, in 1996, for worst refereeing performance of the century award.

How to make Manchester United pay if they want Jordan

February 4, 2011 by Colin Randall

Most people seem to agree that Jordan Henderson has looked short of his best in recent games.

He remains a terrific player who ought to have a truly massive career ahead of him.

We naturally hope that career is with Sunderland AFC, and that playing for us proves no obstacle to picking up loads of caps for England. Being chosen for the England Under-21 squad for a friendly in Italy next week means he may have to wait for his second full cap, but that wait is unlikely to prove a long one.

Meyer and Welbeck: when bad news seems good

January 7, 2011 by Colin Randall

If Steve Bruce had announced on Wednesday morning that David Meyler would be out for 10 weeks and Danny Welbeck for three, we’d have been horrified.

Dreams become nightmares for our Man Utd and Ireland stars

January 6, 2011 by Colin Randall

This short posting is dedicated to David Meyler, our young Irish midfielder whose awful, accidental injury at Villa Park looks likely to cost him another lengthy period of treatment. The lad had done extremely well on his return from the last cruciate ligament injury and it is no surprise that he is, as Steve Bruce has said, devastated.

Dedicated to David, but started off as a routine piece – written before events at Aston Villa – about Danny Welbeck as one of Pete Sixsmith‘s regular offerings to the Stretford End Arising website’s running series on Manchester United’s loaned-out players. Danny also left the pitch on a stretcher last night and faces a nasty layoff of his own with a torn hamstring. Pete’s thoughts were entirely positive as he wrote the words that follow and Salut! Sunderland hopes to see both players make strong recoveries and make the words come true ….

In 12 months’ time, as he scores Sunderland’s 3rd goal in a tense Europa League victory over Ajax, Danny Welbeck will look back on December 2010 as the month he changed from a boy to a man.

He cemented a place in Steve Bruce’s first team, first of all partnering Darren Bent and then Asamoah Gyan. But the key to it was that he was the first choice while the other two scrapped it out for the privilege of partnering him.