Louis van Gaal says that Danny Welbeck was sold to Arsenal because he was not good enough for Manchester United but denies that the club have ditched their vaunted youth policy.
United’s £150million summer spend on six new players, including Angel di Maria and Radamel Falcao, has led to concerns that they are turning their back on homegrown talent – especially after England striker Welbeck was sold to Arsenal for £16m.
But at a press conference to unveil Falcao and Daley Blind on Thursday, Van Gaal claimed that United remain as committed as ever to promoting young players.
He explained the reason behind selling Manchester-born Welbeck, who has been at the club since childhood, pointing out that the England striker’s record of 29 goals from 142 games was not nearly as good as Wayne Rooney or Robin van Persie.
‘I have given all the players a chance to convince me of their qualities,’ said Van Gaal. ‘When you ask about Danny Welbeck, he was here since the age of nine and after Sunderland (on loan) he played three seasons at United but he doesn’t have the record of Van Persie or Rooney and that’s the standard. That’s why we let him go.
‘Falcao, okay, but also the youngsters who will fit in. That’s the policy and that’s why I’m here. The transformation is in this new process.
‘We spoke with Danny Welbeck and also Chicharito [Javier Hernandez] before we got the chance to sign Falcao. We have to be fair about that. In that part (area of the team) we had a lot of youth who can fit in. They have to take their chance to play football. I have to put them in the squad.’
Source: Daily Mail
Vote Big Eye Ug as Uganda’s most Social, Informative & Entertainment Site in the Rising Star Awards. Just log onto http://risingstarafrica.com/poll
OR SMS RSA80 to 8888. Thank you.
