Danny Welbeck makes De Zerbi claim after surpassing Man United, Arsenal and Sunderland record

Danny Welbeck has revealed Brighton’s success is down to Roberto De Zerbi’s never-ending desire to improve.

The Seagulls remained in the race for a top-six Premier League finish with a 5-0 demolition of Sheffield United on Sunday, which came three weeks after a 5-2 FA Cup win at Bramall Lane.

Goals from Facundo Buonanotte and Welbeck, Simon Adingra’s double and a Jack Robinson own goal did the damage for the Seagulls as they remain six points behind sixth-placed Manchester United.

Welbeck’s strike took him to 21 goals from 97 outings for Brighton – surpassing his 20 goals from 90 games for Man United, his 16 goals from 88 appearances for Arsenal and easily beating his six from 26 at Sunderland.

Manager De Zerbi has taken Brighton to the next level since his appointment in 2022, with the club resuming their Europa League campaign soon, and Welbeck puts it down to the Italian’s standards.

“He is always demanding, every single moment, every single day, every single second so there is no time to rest,” Welbeck said on the club’s official website.

“That is one of the great things about him.

“It was a different game than the one we faced in the FA Cup a few weeks back, but it is important we got the three points. Five goals, a clean sheet, it has been positive.”

The afternoon could not have gone much worse for Sheffield United, who conceded five at home for the third successive game.