Having returned from long term injury against Leicester in mid February, Danny Welbeck has certainly rejuvenated a lacklustre Arsenal side and sent a timely reminder to both Arsene Wenger and Roy Hodgson of what he can do when fully fit.
Having opened the scoring for the Gunners in a recent victory over Everton, the former Manchester United striker capped off his comeback this week with a return to the England squad for their upcoming matches with Germany and the Netherlands. However, Welbeck was brought back down to earth with a bump after having to sit out of training just three days after his goal at Goodison Park.
With Welbeck determined to prove himself ahead of the European Championships in the summer, he would have been hoping for a chance to give Hodgson a first hand reminder of his abilities.
However, after discussions with the Arsenal medical team, Welbeck was forced to carry out his work alone in the gym, while his team mates stepped out preparations on the pitch.
The 25 year-old earned his most recent international cap almost a year ago to the day in a goal scoring performance against Lithuania, and faces stiff competition for a place in the squad for France with rivals Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge all demonstrating their credentials in recent weeks.
Howwever, with four goals in his last nine games since his return with Arsenal, Welbeck is certainly a name not to discount. For those of you who are looking ahead to Euro 2016 betting, if he can replicate his league form you could be quids in, with Coral currently offer Welbeck odds of 6/1 to claim a place in England’s starting eleven for their opening Euro 2016 fixture against Russia.
The pressure has been piled on England ahead of the competition, with German manager Joachim Loew kicking off the mind games by stating that he believes England will be among the favourites for the tournament. With plenty of places still up for grabs, one of the main uncertainties concerns Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere.
Having missed the whole season through injury, Hodgson has refused to shut the door on Wilshere, who was one of the first names on the team sheet before his spell on the sidelines. As one of England’s top players when fully fit, the temptation to include the Gunners man in his squad will surely be too much to refuse. Coral offer odds of 6/5 for Wilshere to make England’s final squad for the summer.