Danny Welbeck was allowed to leave Manchester United for a 'bargain' £16million by Louis van Gaal... but does the new Old Trafford boss know exactly what he's lost?

• Danny Welbeck joined Arsenal from Manchester United on transfer deadline day for £16million
• The striker scored two goals against Switzerland on Monday night
• Welbeck was born and bred in Manchester and tipped for great things 
• Michael Owen: 'It could be one of the signings of the summer’
• Jamie Redknapp called it the ‘bargain of the century’ while former England captain Terry Butcher claimed: ‘Man United will regret selling Welbeck'

The debate was always going to catch up with Danny Welbeck eventually but his two goals in Switzerland have accelerated the process even before his Arsenal debut.

Welbeck’s first appearance for Arsene Wenger’s side is likely to be against Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday but his move to London has left a sore festering in the red half of the same northern city.

One of their own has gone. Manchester born, Old Trafford bred in the United way, tipped for great things from an early age and sold even though he was not battering down the door to get out. 

Louis van Gaal and Ed Woodward have allowed him to join a direct top-four rival, without ever knowing how good he was or can be, and without ever giving him an extended run in the central position he prefers.

The time to judge the winners and losers in this fascinating piece of deadline-day business will be at the end of the season but his England double in Basle, playing up front with Wayne Rooney, provided ammunition for those who suspect United have erred.

‘I would like to have still seen Danny as a United player,’ said former captain Bryan Robson, speaking at the Soccerex conference in Manchester on Tuesday. ‘That is one move I would not have done. He’ll give everything and it’s a great signing.’

It is as if Welbeck represented more than his qualities as a footballer. Mike Phelan, another former United player and Sir Alex Ferguson’s assistant for many years, claimed it was a sign the club was losing its identity; an identity built on the Busby Babes.

‘He can really play,’ said Michael Owen, who trained and played alongside Welbeck for three years. ‘But try getting in the team there. There are so many good players. A lot of the time when Danny did play, he played on the left or the right but, as his England record suggests, when he is played in the middle, he can score goals. It could be one of the signings of the summer.’ 

Statistics may drive Roy Hodgson into a four-letter fury, but Welbeck’s are fascinating. His international goal-per-minute ratio puts him up with England’s best and, at 23, he is the same age as Gary Lineker when the prolific striker was still searching for his first international goal.

Welbeck is in double figures. Four came against San Marino and Moldova but he has important goals, too, as against Sweden in Euro 2012, and in Switzerland.

Jamie Redknapp hailed Arsenal’s new signing as the ‘bargain of the century’ at £16million while former England captain Terry Butcher claimed: ‘Man United will regret selling Welbeck to Arsenal. Arsene Wenger must be purring.’ 

This suggestion was put to Rooney as he emerged relieved and triumphant from the dressing rooms in Basle’s St Jakob Park.

‘It was his decision,’ shrugged the England captain. ‘He’s at Arsenal now and so I wish him the best of luck. Danny is a fantastic footballer. He’ll score goals if he gets chances.’ 

With goals comes confidence and with confidence come more goals. ‘The point is he was playing up front,’ said Hodgson. ‘Not having to think so hard about the things we want him to do when he plays wide.

‘When he plays wide we put a lot of emphasis on him reading the game, tucking in at the right moments, going forward at the right moment. Playing up front frees him to play in what he considers to be his best position.’

Coaches adore Welbeck because he can listen and carry out instructions and is a willing grafter in defensive areas. It was for this reason Ferguson chose him to stop Xabi Alonso when United played Real Madrid. 

Welbeck had been identified early. They knew something special was coming through the ranks. When Fraizer Campbell scored a glut of goals on loan at Hull City in 2008-09 he was not rushed back because the feeling was that Welbeck would be better.

In his second autobiography, published last year, Ferguson put him on a par with anything coming out of Barcelona’s academy at the same time. Perhaps this is why Welbeck’s exit is like a bitter pill at Old Trafford. He was released too willingly, to make room for Radamel Falcao, a Colombian on loan with a spectacular goal record to match his spectacular wages and who is untried in English football.

Falcao may sell more shirts and attract more sponsors. He may score more goals. But he also signifies a break from the past for a club which conquered the world by growing its own.

The debate will continue to orbit Welbeck. The two teams meet at Arsenal in November.