United boss in subtle dig at Gunners new-boy.
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal insists that Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck wouldn’t get into his starting lineup at Old Trafford, as the Dutchman defends letting the England international leave the club this summer.
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According to the Daily Express, the Dutchman is not overly concerned that the £16m man has gone on to shine at the Emirates Stadium, insisting that the move was the right one for him to ensure he was playing regularly to further his career.
Still, van Gaal maintains that the 23-year-old would not have been able to start upfront on a regular basis in his United side, with big names such as Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie and summer signing Radamel Falcao all ahead of him in the pecking order.
Welbeck will meet his old side for the first time as an Arsenal player in their clash at the Emirates Stadium this weekend, and was understandably the subject of many of the questions aimed at the United boss in this press conference.
“He could have [continued] playing for Manchester United,” he said, “but we decided that he could go and he has benefitted from it. I think that any player who is playing regularly in a team will always develop. He is now benefitting from playing every week. That was a question mark with Manchester United.
“It’s good to see he’s doing what I thought he would [at Arsenal]. I cannot judge him so well because I haven’t seen him play but now I shall see him I can judge him.”
Van Gaal added that he can imagine Welbeck will score against his old club at some point, as that is the nature of the game.
He said: “You know Robin Van Persie was a player at Arsenal and he has already scored three goals against them since he left. It will be the same feeling I’m sure for Welbeck. This is the football world. That’s life believe me.”