Tag: Unai Emery

Welbeck – “something really exceptional you don’t find in many players”

DANNY WELBECK was still at school when he made his senior football debut in the League Cup.

A first-year scholar at Man Utd, and just 17 in September 2008, Welbeck made his bow against Middlesbrough in front of a 53,000 crowd at Old Trafford. United won 3-1 with goals from Ronaldo, Giggs and Nani. And they went all the way that season, beating Tottenham on penalties in the final at Wembley.

Although Welbeck had been subbed off 10 minutes into the second half, it was the first of many medals he collected and in five years at Arsenal, after his £16m 2014 transfer deadline day move from Old Trafford, he twice collected FA Cup winners’ medals (even though he missed the 2015 final through injury when Aston Villa were humbled 4-0).

When Welbeck scored the decisive quarter-final goal for Arsenal that knocked United out of the 2015 competition, manager Arsene Wenger praised the player and said: “We all want to do well when we play against our former club, to show that you are a great player, but it’s not easy to deal with the mental situation of it. 

“He focused just on his game, didn’t do anything special. He just played football like we wanted him to play. He has shown mental strength because it’s not always easy to deal with that. You have a little bit of a psychological consideration.”

Wenger continued: “Overall, I think he had a great game. He just wants to win. He’s a team player, that’s what I like about Danny. He’s intelligent and he always wants to do well for the team. 

“He’s a great talent and he has shown again that he can produce such a complete performance, defensively and offensively as he did today – he has a great future.”

Welbeck played in the 2017 final when the Gunners edged it 2-1 against favourites Chelsea, and it was a highlight of his injury-plagued five years at Arsenal.

“It was a great performance,” he said. “Every single one of us on the pitch performed really well that day. It was a deserved win.”

Welbeck scoring one of his three against Galatasary

Another highlight was scoring the first senior hat-trick of his career in a 4-1 Champions League home win over Galatasary in October 2014.

Injuries to each of his knees and a serious broken right ankle severely limited Welbeck’s availability during his time with the Gunners and he admitted in a matchday programme interview: “When I look back, the injuries I suffered really hindered my progress.

“That really disappoints me to this day because I know that if I had managed to stay fit I would have done a lot more at the club, scored more goals and made more appearances.”

Even so, he pointed out: “I look back on my time at Arsenal as a great experience; a great club. There were lots of positives, despite the negatives with the injuries.

“The fans always treated me well, showed me love, and I will always respect and remember that.”

Welbeck opened up about the impact of his many injuries in a July 2020 interview with Adam Bate of Sky Sports. “You go through a load of emotions,” he said. “There are times when you are there sat in your hospital bed and you are crying. You are just overthinking things.”

He continued: “Once you have had the surgery and your head is straight, you know what has happened, it is behind you and you have got to look forward. You try to build from where you are that day. Every single day there are steps to overcome. You just have to come through them and you find that you are getting better and better and feeling in a better state of mind.”

He also explained how the time wasn’t entirely wasted. “There are football games on TV, you can watch different players who are playing in your position, you can watch your own clips to see what you can improve on,” he explained.

“There are little apps that can help you, people who you can talk to. I think there are so many extra percentages you can gain and if you can get that extra one per cent it is always going to be a help.”

Welbeck buries one of his 32 goals for Arsenal

Wenger was certainly an admirer of what Welbeck was able to contribute. For example, speaking in February 2018 ahead of a shock 2-1 Europa League second leg home defeat against Graham Potter’s Ostersunds, Wenger said: “I want to keep him because I believe he has gone through a torrid time.

“He has come out well. I see signs in training now that are positive. If he can stay on the pitch and not be injured, I want him to stay here.”

And after the striker scored his fifth goal in five appearances to clinch a Europa League quarter final v CSKA Moscow, he said: “The qualities of Danny Welbeck… when your back’s against the wall, he looks like he has that extra special motivation in his body and in his head, that can give you something special.

“That’s something really exceptional and that you do not find in many players.”

Welbeck made 126 appearances for the Gunners (78 starts + 48 as sub) and scored 32 goals. As he had at United, he once again found himself at a club when there was an end of an era moment as Wenger left the Gunners after 22 years in 2018.

A badly-broken right ankle sustained in a Europa League match against Sporting Lisbon in November 2018 proved to be the end of his Arsenal career – he only made one Premier League start (out of seven appearances in total, plus seven off the bench) under Wenger’s successor Unai Emery.

Released at the end of that season, he joined Watford, who train next to Arsenal’s training ground in Hertfordshire, but injury struck early into his time with the Hornets, a hamstring problem putting him out for four months. After they’d got through four managers in the Covid-hit season, and been relegated from the Premier League, he left in October 2020 having scored three goals in 20 appearances (10 starts + 10 as a sub).

When Welbeck linked up with Brighton that autumn, few supporters would have imagined five years later he would still be making a huge contribution to the club.

There were a few murmurings at the beginning of the 2025-26 season but a brace in Albion’s comeback 3-1 win at Chelsea in September once again saw him grabbing headlines for all the right reasons. Two more followed at home to Newcastle and he once again scored against his first club at Old Trafford on 25 October. And long may it continue!

Speaking to The Athletic in February 2025, Welbeck said of his longevity: “I can probably thank my mum and dad for the genes. I work hard to keep myself in good condition and I am feeling fit and strong.”

Reporter Andy Naylor said: “He does not have a strict diet regime but watches what he eats, snacking on fruits or an occasional bar of chocolate between a normal three meals a day. His idea of a takeaway is a mixed grill with rice and salad.

“Another secret of Welbeck’s long-running success is a desire and determination to be the best he can be for as long as he can. He focuses on his football, turning down invites to take part in podcasts and punditry, preserving his energy for the training pitch and matchdays.”

After four seasons at Brighton in each of which he scored six or seven goals, in 2024-25 his 11 goals made him joint top scorer with Karou Mitoma from 26 starts + 10 as sub.

With five on the board before Halloween in 2025-26, the signs are looking positive for his best-ever haul.

Welbeck himself declared: “As long as I feel good, that’s how long I will go on for. If I feel good, feel like I can impact games, then I will just keep on going.”

Pace and panache of marauding left-back Pervis Estupiñán

ECUADOR international Pervis Estupiñán stepped comfortably into the boots of Marc Cucurella when Albion signed him from Villarreal in the summer of 2022.

Rampaging runs down the left wing, pinpoint crosses and the occasional spectacular goal unleashed from distance all endeared the player to the Albion faithful.

A terrific goal he scored away to Crystal Palace in February 2023 was ruled out by VAR – and to compound the injustice, the referees body PGMOL subsequently admitted the strike had mistakenly been ruled out when John Brooks drew the offside line against the wrong Palace player.

“I was very sad about that disallowed goal because I don’t score a lot,” Estupiñán said later. “I remember it was a very equal game, but we played well.” The game finished 1-1.

One that did count, though, sealed Albion’s impressive 3-0 win away to Arsenal on 14 May 2023.

It was a fitting end to what was an impressive first season with the Seagulls during which he made 35 starts and six appearances off the bench.

His performances as the straightforward replacement for the previous season’s player of the year meant Albion could glow in the warmth of having trousered £62m for Cucurella and replaced him with a top quality defender for whom they paid £14.9m.

After he had scored his second goal for the Seagulls in a 4-1 win at Wolves at the beginning of the 2023-24 season, Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi said he believed the defender had the potential to become one of the best left-backs in the world if he continued to improve his first touch and his passing.

“Pervis is one of the most crucial players for us because he started from left-back, but you can find him in a striker position,” he said. “He’s very smart, he’s one of our secrets I think.”

Praising Albion’s recruitment department for “yet again delivering another masterstroke” in signing Estupiñán, The Professional Football Scouts Association declared: “Full of determination, tenacity, energy and running power, his impact has been felt heavily on both ends of the pitch, as his all-round contribution has been a major asset for Roberto De Zerbi’s Seagulls.

“While his defensive work has been solid, with him feisty in his duels, aggressive in the press, good at tracking runners and positionally sound, it’s been his offensive impact that’s really caught the eye.”

The organisation talked about his “devastating and varied movement” and highlighted the way he dovetailed with Kaoru Mitoma in front of him. “The pair’s astute interchanges and ability to create space for each other by drawing or pinning adversaries has been a joy to watch,” it said.

“Be it making headway with wicked infield underlapping runs, blistering overlaps or making room for his colleagues by acting as a decoy, his movement has been a huge source of inspiration going forward for Brighton.”

Brighton certainly felt his loss with a muscle injury over the course of several months in the 2023-24 season, with The Athletic maintaining: “None of the replacements who tried to fill the void created by his absence possess the adventurous Estupiñán’s blend of athleticism, power and stamina.”

In a detailed analysis of his stats, the platform suggested in January 2024 that Estupiñán had a strong claim to be considered the best left back in the Premier League, comparing him favourably against Liverpool’s Andy Robertson, Man Utd’s Luke Shaw and Arsenal’s Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Although he scored two stunning goals (in a 4-2 home win over Spurs and a 4-2 win at Stoke City in the FA Cup) within a matter of nine days mid-season, too often on his return to the Albion side in the second half of the season, Estupiñán didn’t look anything like the player fans had enjoyed watching the previous campaign.

And then his season ended too early when he was subbed off in the first half of the 1-1 draw at Burnley in April with an ankle injury that subsequently required surgery, ruling him out of playing for his country in the Copa America summer competition.

De Zerbi reckoned Estupiñán would not be fit enough to start the new season and it remains to be seen when Albion fans might see him return to the starting line-up. In the meantime, another south American, Valentin Barco, has slotted into that position with aplomb.

Born in the coastal Ecuadorian city of Esmeraldas on 21 January 1998, Estupiñán’s footballing journey began aged 13 in the youth set up at Liga Deportiva Universitaria de Quito, in the country’s capital.

Given his professional debut shortly after his 17th birthday in 2015, he made 40 appearances in Ecuador’s top division and represented his country in the 2015 South American under-17 Championship and the FIFA under-17 World Cup. He was also given an early taste of international club competition in the Copa Sudamericana and the Copa Libertadores.

Not long after being selected in the best XI of the 2015 Ecuadorian Serie A season, Estupiñán joined the Pozzo-family-owned Watford, although he didn’t actually play a game for the Hornets in four years on their books. At the time, the Pozzos also owned Granada in Spain where Estupiñán spent the 2016-17 season on loan.

Subsequent season-long loans were also spent in Spain at Almeria, Mallorca and Osasuna, as detailed by Zach Lowy on breakingthelines.com.

It was said he would return to be part of Watford’s side for the 2020-21 season but their relegation from the Premier League led to him being sold instead.

In action for Villarreal

When Villarreal’s regular left-back Alberto Moreno was sidelined for six months after rupturing his ACL in pre-season, they signed Estupiñán for £15m to plug the gap. Lowy described him as “an athletic, technically sound left back who marauds up the flank with pace and panache and can deliver a deadly cross like few others”.

Lowy said Estupiñán excelled under Unai Emery as Villarreal finished seventh and won the Europa League for the first time in the club’s history (although Estupiñán was an unused substitute when they beat Manchester United on penalties in the final). He went on to make 74 appearances for them, including helping them to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League.

Having played at under 17 and under 20 levels for his country, Estupiñán made his first senior start for Ecuador in a 6-1 defeat to Argentina in 2019 but he went on the same year to play in that year’s Copa America when they reached the quarter finals and he played in all three Ecuador matches at the 2022 World Cup (together with fellow countrymen and Albion teammates Moises Caicedo and Jeremy Sarmiento).