Welbeck may get Swiss role
DANNY WELBECK could be set for his first start under Gareth Southgate at Leicester tomorrow night after coming so close to rescuing a point against Spain.
With Harry Kane continuing to lack sharpness, the England coach is thinking of resting him for the friendly against Switzerland, as much to give Kane a mental break as a physical one.
Welbeck was England’s only outfield player in Russia who did not get a run-out from the first whistle, and had to wait until deep into injury-time on Saturday to come off the bench.
But the absence of the retired Jamie Vardy and the impact Welbeck made – getting the ball into the net only for the effort to be controversially ruled out for a foul – is likely to be enough for him to earn a first start since 2016. “There were opportunities before Jamie retired and there’s opportunities now,” said Welbeck.
“With England, you’re always going to have to give it your best shot, do what you can in club football and then, when the opportunity is there, I’m going to take it.”
Welbeck’s credentials have hardly been helped by a lack of game time at Arsenal – a situation that has not improved since the arrival of Unai Emery.
The England man seems to sit behind both Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in the pecking order, having enjoyed only 21 minutes of first-team action. But Welbeck insists it is only a matter of time before he is having more of a say at club level.
“Whenever I get on the pitch, I’ve trained hard. I’m just going to give it my all and try to stake a place,” he said.