POPE FRANCIS had an unusual hand in getting Danny Welbeck to swap Manchester United for Arsenal in 2014.
The Pope died on Easter Monday at the age of 88 following a stroke that led to coma and irreversible heart failure.
Pope Francis passed away on Easter Monday aged 88[/caption]
As well as his incredible impact on so many people and his commitment to reshaping the Vatican’s ideas around LGBTQ+ rights, Pope Francis was known to be a big football fan.
That love for the sport even meant he had a roundabout way of impacting Arsenal‘s transfer business during the 2014 summer window.
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was spending transfer deadline day in Rome as he had an appointment to meet The Pope as well as participating in a charity football match.
In fact, the Gunners’ manager was even negotiating during his wait to meet The Pope as Arsenal tried to work out a late deal to lure Welbeck away from Old Trafford.
Speaking at the time, Wenger said: “Meeting the Pope was an experience I did not want to miss.
“I am a Catholic, so it was an experience, and one I accepted a long time ago.”
Adding: “He is a great person. He shows humility and is available to meet for everybody, has a word with everybody.
“He is also a football fan. He is a supporter of San Lorenzo in Argentina. You cannot be born in Argentina and not be a football fan.
Arsene Wenger revealed that he was in Rome to meet The Pope during the 2014 transfer deadline day[/caption]
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“He spoke with many Argentinians, so I wanted to be discreet and say, ‘it was nice to meet you and bye-bye’.”
And even though it would seem that Wenger was kept busy by his meeting with The Pope, the legendary gaffer managed to get a £16m deal over the line for Welbeck.
Wenger even revealed that getting up early to meet Pope Francis actually helped him secure the Welbeck deal, explaining that it gave him more time to negotiate the transfer.
He said: “In 2014 you can always be in touch with everybody even when you travel.
“The advantage of that day was I had to get up at 6 o’clock in the morning for my flight and I was available the whole day.”
It may not have been a direct involvement, but had Wenger not headed to see The Pope then Welbeck may have never laced up his boots for the Gunners.
Arsenal fans will be thankful he did, as the striker became a cult hero at the Emirates – scoring 32 times in 126 appearances.
His late goal against Leicester City in the 2015/16 season still lives long in the memory of many Arsenal fans, and he left the club in 2019 as a two-time FA Cup winner.
Welbeck, 34, is now plying his trade with Brighton where he has scored nine goals and registered four assists in the Premier League this season – his best ever return in the competition.
Welbeck won two FA Cups with Arsenal[/caption]
He is having his best ever season at Brighton this term[/caption]