Ferguson plays down Welbeck hype

31 January 2010 11:21
The 19-year-old struck with a delightful chip in the 84th minute after substitute Neill Collins had opened the scoring with a 64th-minute header at Deepdale.[LNB]It was only Welbeck's second appearance for North End after he joined the club on loan until the end of the season.[LNB]Ferguson said of Welbeck's goal: "You may call it cheeky but it was one hell of a finish.[LNB]"He showed great composure but we've got to be careful we don't place too much responsibility on him.[LNB]"He's only 19 and has come into a really hard league that he has never played in before.[LNB]"But as soon as he scored you could see the shackles come off and he grew in confidence.[LNB]"You would pay to see that sort of goal alone. What a magnificent finish."[LNB]Preston opened the scoring when substitute Collins, who had only been on the pitch five minutes, rose highest to greet Richard Chaplow's right-wing cross with a firm header.[LNB]Collins had replaced Youl Mawene at the heart of the defence and it was his first goal for the club.[LNB]Welbeck then showcased his undoubted class with his stunning strike to seize centre stage six minutes from time to give Preston their second successive win.[LNB]The result allowed Ferguson to get one over his former Old Trafford team-mate Roy Keane.[LNB]But the Scot insisted: "This wasn't about me or Roy.[LNB]"Roy is a good lad and the fact he was involved today had nothing to do with it.[LNB]"Ipswich had only lost one of their last 15 so this was a good result for us."[LNB]Ferguson revealed Celtic have still not come close to matching North End's £4.5million valuation of highly-rated defender Sean St Ledger.[LNB]He added: "We need one or two new faces to freshen things up and I am pushing the chairman as much as I can.[LNB]"The situation with Sean St Ledger hasn't changed. Celtic are a million miles away and they aren't going to get him with what they have offered and as a manager there's no way I want him to leave.[LNB]"He's one of the best defenders in the league and I think Celtic should stop messing about to be honest.[LNB]"They either give us what we want or finish it - simple as that."[LNB]Defeat was harsh on Keane's Ipswich, who had lost only one of their previous 15 outings and were neat and tidy in possession but struggled to create genuine goalscoring opportunities.[LNB]Preston were not much better, but they upped the tempo after a dreadful first 45 minutes and just about deserved their win.[LNB]Keane blasted his relegation-threatened side's defending and said: "From our point of view the first goal came from unbelievably bad defending.[LNB]"We don't score enough goals so we are putting ourselves under pressure all the time."[LNB]Ipswich have been linked with a move for Cardiff striker Michael Chopra and Keane said: "Chops is a very, very good striker.[LNB]"Whether our club can afford him on his wages remains to be seen."[LNB][LNB][LNB]

Source: Team_Talk