Danny Welbeck has been told by Louis van Gaal he can leave Manchester United, with the decision up to the 23-year-old striker who has two years remaining on his contract.

Van Gaal’s decision may cause some surprise because the manager wants to play a 3-5-2 formation that would seem to require four forwards in his squad to provide competition and to mitigate against injury.

Van Gaal may have decided to look at promoting James Wilson, the 18-year-old who scored twice on debut in last season’s 3-1 win over Hull City at Old Trafford.

Welbeck has veen valued at around £20 million.