Manchester United: Danny Welbeck Set for Stellar Season After Electric Start

To many, Danny Welbeck exemplified the often blind loyalty shown by the Sir Alex Ferguson regime to its players. A striker with blistering pace and a penchant for the sublime, Welbeck’s periods of excellence were often negated by an unrefined technique and wayward finishing instinct.

The status quo at United is not ideal. This summer of unprecedented transition has manifested into one of disillusionment as the club’s transfer approach has bordered on the farcical. Added to that the situation regarding want away striker Wayne Rooney and the palpable flaw that still persists in the Red Devils central-midfield cavity, and you have a club racked by uncertainty.

The skepticism over United’s potential this year is underlined by the various odds and predictions for the 2013/14 campaign. After a run-away victory in last season's competition, United should enter as clear favorites, with an almost identical squad and winning mentality. The fact that, in many quarters, they are being written off, at the expense of spendthrift rivals Chelsea and Manchester City, speaks wonders.

So it was that United entered the new season under a cloud of unease. Their opening fixture, a daunting trip to meet Brian Laudrup’s exciting Swansea side, only permeated misgivings.

The match, therefore, was a misnomer. An emphatic 4-1 victory, blew the naysayers out of the water, sending a very strong signal of Manchester United’s title aspirations. Talismanic striker Robin van Persie solidified his justifiable status as the league's finest striker with a fine brace, but it was Welbeck whose performance will have raised the most eyebrows.

Also registering a double, including an absolutely delightful second, Danny Welbeck produced a performance of consummate class and maturity. 

Calm on the ball, quick and agile both in position and in pressing the opposition, Welbeck ran a classy Swansea defense ragged. His largely ridiculed finishing ability—which saw him only register a solitary league strike last term—appeared much improved. From the predatory instinct and fine movement of his first, to the calm finesse of his wonderful second, this was a young man at ease with his surroundings.

Van Persie’s performance emphatically stated how integral he will be to potential United success this season, yet the Dutchman's class was never in dispute.

Such is van Persie’s ability, indeed, that he has inadvertently created a situation in which Wayne Rooney is expendable. England’s finest current player is no longer integral to the club he once defined.

Rooney is hugely important to United still and should be kept if at all possible, yet the situation has almost reached the point of no return. Players of Rooney’s calibre do not make affable back-ups. Wayne Rooney wants to start, expects to start, and there is a strong case for suggesting that he should start.

Manager David Moyes‘ misguided public show of support for Van Persie earlier in the Summer, however, has made Rooney’s position almost untenable.

A countdown that began during the tail end of the Ferguson regime looks set to soon strike its end-game, with Chelsea and Arsenal both primed to strike. Rooney will undoubtedly deliver in a new stomping ground, quite possibly ridiculing his departure, but the damage has been done, there might be no going back.

The onus therefore, without expensive reinforcements, will be placed on Welbeck’s shoulders. The local boy who came up through the clubs famed Carrington Academy, will be thrust into the spotlight like never before as a first-choice starter.

Admittedly it is early in this fledgling season, and any assumption must be delivered with an element of caution. Yet in his three starts of the season so far (two for United and one for England), Welbeck has exuded confidence. Registering three goals already, his finishing, the main bug-bear of his doubters also show’s signs of improvement.

Wayne Rooney is of a calibre that he can still flourish at Manchester United, and if at all possible the club should make every effort to ensure he does. Yet if the situation is too far gone, Rooney’s departure will undoubtedly add to the miasma of doubt and uncertainty surrounding Moyes’ reign. 

The early performances and potential of Welbeck though, are one of a few positives in what has been a decidedly subdued inauguration of Moyes’ managerial tenure