Arsenal Morphing Danny Welbeck’s Expectations

Arsenal have made it perfectly clear what their intentions are in the striker department. Danny Welbeck is the guy. Isn’t this a bit unnecessarily dicey?

So you’ve built a title-contending starting XI that, if they can stay healthy, will run away with the title. Now, the task is reinforcing that starting XI with enough quality that injuries and other competitions do not get in the way. You already have your big game striker, but now you have to reinforce him with another striker. Who do you choose?

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An injured Danny Welbeck.

Arsenal purchased Danny Welbeck two summers ago under the impression that he would turn into a goal scoring threat. He was supposed to challenge Olivier Giroud, something that has been proven effective time and again.

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However, after a year of watching Welbeck perform, some things became incredibly clear. First of all, he is going to need time to become a goal scorer and there is no guarantee he ever will. Secondly, he is an absolute workhorse that, even if he does not become a goal scorer still has tremendous value. Thirdly, while Arsenal are waiting on him to score goals, someone else may be needed to challenge the striker position.

All of these points took on a completely different meaning when he went down with the bone bruise from hell, which has now kept him out for ten months.

Welbeck is set to play for the U21 side this weekend and that is a fantastic sign. But the problem is that these three things we learned about Danny Welbeck have morphed, with added implications. Firstly, the fact that he needs time means that Arsenal is completely reliant on one man, Olivier Giroud. Secondly, yes, he is a workhorse, but that isn’t enough anymore, as Wenger has pinned Arsenal’s striking hopes on his shoulders.

Finally, while Arsenal have been waiting for him to score goals and waiting for him to get healthy, no one else has been brought in to challenge for the striker position. That means that when Welbeck returns the pressure is all on him to be a striker and nothing else.

In fact, the pressure is so squarely on his shoulders, that anything less than a striker will absolutely be seen as a failure. Arsenal have been putting off buying a new striker because of Danny Welbeck. So if he falls off into a winger, which is no crime, he will still be seen as a failed investment because of what Arsene Wenger is doing.

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Wenger very clearly stated that he would not buy another striker because he would rather wait for Welbeck. Again, insert a name like “Morata” or “Austin” and that statement makes sense. Those two are proven strikers. But we all know how Wenger works. He bought Welbeck with the knowledge that, even if he never panned out at striker, he could be passed on as a success due to his other qualities.

By pinning Arsenal’s striking depth on Danny Welbeck, Wenger has removed his safety net. If it so happens that Welbeck cannot make it as a striker, you can almost hear Wenger now: “He is valuable in so many other ways. He contributes defensively and in building the attack.”

Again, that is true, if not for the fact that, if this season does not work out, one of the main downfalls will have been Wenger’s reluctance to buy help up front. Why? Because of Danny Welbeck.

So what exactly is Wenger expecting out of Welbeck? He was bought to be a striker because Manchester United never gave him a proper opportunity. When it did not initially pan out, Wenger helped us accept that his qualities make him more than a striker. Yet, here we are a year later, after acceptance of this fact, and now all of a sudden we are back at square one where Welbeck has to be a striker again.

While Arsenal was supposed to be the best thing to happen to Danny Welbeck and while Welbeck was supposed to be everything Arsenal ever needed, the opposite of both may be unfolding. Danny Welbeck is being told it’s okay to not score by Wenger, yet now Wenger is relying on him to score as soon as he returns.

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Meanwhile, Arsenal still don’t have another striking option. Good luck, Danny.