I remember a time not so long ago when Darren Fletcher was the ‘butt’ of many jokes. “Can’t pass”, “Can’t shoot” “doesn’t offer anything” used to be some of the comments issued regarding Fletch. My, how times have changed.

Fletcher has become the fulcrum of our side. He has developed his game so much that he has turned into probably our best midfielder. He now can pass, shoot, and his tackling has become one of the best in our squad. Fletcher’s endeavour is unquestionable, he never stops running, getting in the oppositions faces and generally making their lives hell.

In the past, many of the teams we played against wouldn’t have been too disappointed to see Fletchers name of the team-sheet. Now the opposite is the case. The opposition now know they have a huge battle on their hands when they’ll be playing a Manchester United side with Fletcher in the middle.

FletcherNot since Roy Keane have we had a midfielder who’ll “put himself about” like Fletcher. He’s an absolute breath of fresh air and Sir Alex Ferguson has realised this as well. It’s no coincidence that Ferguson places such trust in Fletcher in the big games. He has a real big game mentality and never seems to suffer from nerves, well maybe he does but he has a fantastic way of hiding it.

The importance of Fletcher was never so obvious in last year’s Champions League. He was simply brilliant against Arsenal where we totally destroyed them in the semi-final. They simply couldn’t break us down, as every time Fabregas and the other creative Arsenal players were on the ball, it was Fletcher who has hassling and harrying them. It was one of the best performances he had in a Manchester United shirt and that’s no exaggeration. It was heart-breaking to see him get sent off for an idiotic refereeing decision when Fletcher’s endeavour were punished by a referee who made a terrible, terrible decision.

Then there was the final against Barcelona where Fletcher was absent because of an awful technicality where you couldn’t appeal decision like that. Our midfield, to put it mildly were made look totally second-class and Barcelona had no problems bypassing us. Now, I’m not saying the result would have been different but I do think our performance would have been much, much better if we had Darren Fletcher in our team.

Long now are the days where Fletcher is ridiculed by United supporters. We now have such appreciation for what he offers the team and the difference he makes in the side. It’s simply astounding. I’d like to thank Darren Fletcher for never once complaining about his time at Old Trafford, for always willing to do his very best and give 100%. Thank you Darren, you’re a true red.

Article Written by Peterswellman