Rio Ferdinand’s latest — and immediate — reaction is a sign that Ineos should have considered a potential Manchester United summer transfer move for one player.
The Red Devils have made five summer signings so far, including landing Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa and Andrey Santos from Chelsea as part of their midfield rebuild.
Goalkeepers Karl Darlow and Kit Margetson have both been brought to Manchester United, while teenage winger Tynan Thompson has also been signed from Tottenham.
Amid Ineos’ investment in both the first team and the youth academy, Rio Ferdinand has now turned his attention to former Red Devils teammate Danny Welbeck.
If you could only choose one, should Man Utd buy Lewis Hall or promote Harry Amass?
Rio Ferdinand makes a last-ditch plea for Danny Welbeck to return to Man Utd instead of moving to Chelsea
Danny Welbeck enjoyed a relatively injury-free season at Brighton in the 2025-26 campaign and the former Manchester United striker impressed for the Seagulls.
The 35-year-old netted 14 times in 40 appearances across all competitions and Welbeck’s form had even tipped him to climb back into the England squad.
However, Thomas Tuchel decided not to roll the dice with the former Man Utd and Arsenal forward for England’s World Cup campaign in the summer.
Welbeck is under contract at Brighton until 2027 and BBC Sport now reports that Chelsea are exploring a potential summer move for the Seagulls striker.
Rio Ferdinand shared the pitch with Welbeck under Sir Alex Ferguson and had been keen to see his former Man Utd teammate return to Old Trafford this summer
Posting a phone emoji in his tweet, he wrote on X: “Welbs…. Ignore + [sic] come back home! Champions League football next season in Manchester.”
Should we just re-sign Danny Welbeck at this point? He seems to love scoring at Old Trafford
Danny Welbeck could have been an effective solution for Man Utd’s back-up striker hunt for the short term
Outside of the major midfield overhaul this summer, Michael Carrick is in need of another striking option to support Benjamin Sesko in the 2026-27 campaign.
Joshua Zirkzee has featured during the pre-season summer tour so far, but the 25-year-old Dutch forward has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford.
Welbeck would only cost a minimal transfer fee due to his contract length at Brighton and would have arrived at Old Trafford on the back of a strong season as well.
It feels like a move for the former Three Lions international would have been well worth the risk, especially to provide an experienced back-up option to Benjamin Sesko.
Welbeck has been linked with Man Utd before and it felt like a missed opportunity for Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s regime not to sign him ahead of Chelsea’s move for him now.
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