by Nia Griffiths

Danny Welbeck has been looking back on his England career so far and has admitted that he’s disappointed with their performances over recent tournaments.

The forward spoke to the Sport while away with the English national side and revealed that although he’s proud to have been part of the team for both the World Cup and the Euros, he believes they could and should have done better in the competitions.

“I think as a team it’s a bit disappointing,” he said. “At the World Cup we were obviously gutted coming home after being knocked out in the group stages. The Euros in 2012 were obviously my first tournament, and it was a proud moment for me. It was a good tournament, and I believe we could have gone a bit further – we were a bit unlucky on penalties [against Italy] as well.”

Saying this, he does believe the team has improved.

“There has been an improvement. We’ve looked at different formations, different ways to set up as a team and how to attack teams and break them down. Obviously we’re spending more time together too, and as we get to know each other’s games it’s only going to improve.” 

The forward has scored 13 goals for his country in total and six of them have come exclusively from the European Championship qualifying matches making him the top scorer. His impressive goal return, as well as his attitude, has made him popular among England fans and it seems the feeling is mutual.

“They’ve come to Wembley and supported us, and given their full backing,” he said. “That’s something that’s great for the team and the whole squad to see. We just really want to repay the favour.”

England face Slovenia on Sunday and Arsenal fans will be watching with bated breath to see how their man fares since his return from injury. Despite being sidelined a few times, the forward managed to net eight goals for the Gunners and assist six in 34 appearances last season.