United’s teenage striker Danny
Welbeck is targeting more involvement in the Reds senior team after
being given a taste of first-team action on the recent trip to Saudi
Arabia.
The skilful 17-year-old striker, who was part
of the squad that reported for duty against Portsmouth, made a distinct
impression as a substitute in the 3-2 friendly defeat to Al Hilal in
Riyadh last week.
Reds boss Sir Alex Ferguson says Welbeck, an
England U17 international, will now be regularly involved with the
first-team and could be given his competitive debut before the end of
the current season after being handed the squad number 47.
For Welbeck, it was back to Under-18 duties last weekend, scoring the first goal in a 3-3 draw with Everton.
“I’m trying to get as many goals as possible,” he told MUTV. “I scored again for the U18s and I want to keep on scoring goals.”
But the lure of first-team football is intense, especially after his experience in the Middle East.
“It
was great,” the Manchester-born forward declared. “The players and the
coaches were all really welcoming. They helped me get through it all.
The training was so quick, but it was a good experience.
“It was
a shame that I missed the penalty, but I’m over that now. I hope I can
be involved with the first team more often, which can only help me
improve as a player.”
rooney suspended... so let him play?