Manchester United goalscorer Danny Welbeck almost didn't make their Champions League clash at Shakhtar Donetsk.
United security bosses have launched an investigation into how the team bus managed to depart their Carrington training base yesterday ahead of their Champions League encounter with Shakhtar Donetsk while striker Welbeck and defender Chris Smelling remained in the building.
The pair were left stunned when they came outside to discover that the coach had left without them and the alarm was raised before it turned around and came back.
A source told the Manchester Evening News: "The security firm United employ, CES, are supposed to check the numbers.
"They have a bloke with a clipboard who stands at the front and ticks all the players and staff off a list.
"He said that they were all onboard and they set off down the lane and out past the barrier.
"Danny Welbeck and Chris Smelling then came running out of the main building.
"Apparently Chris had gone pale and asked where the coach was. When he was told it had gone he said 'we were supposed to be on it'.
"They managed to get a message to the coach and it came back and picked them up.
"The other players were laughing their heads off. You couldn't make it up."
