Sir Alex Ferguson has blocked attempts to call Danny Welbeck up to the England under-21 squad for their Euro qualifier in Norway on Monday.

The striker came off the substitutes' bench for the senior side during Friday's draw with Montenegro, but manager Stuart Pearce has revealed that the Old Trafford boss was concerned with the amount of travelling Welbeck would have to do before United's trip to Liverpool on Saturday.

"I spoke to Alex and he had concerns with the travelling from Montenegro and back and then getting on a plane and coming to Oslo and I quite understand that to be fair," Pearce told Sky Sports News.

"I had to make the call because we've only got one striker in the squad, so we had a discussion and I thanked him for his help and consideration and we move on from there."

United go into Saturday's fixture at the top of the Premier League table, while Liverpool sit in fifth.