Profile Darren Fletcher

Personal information

Full name : Darren Barr Fletcher

Date of birth : 1 February 1984

Place of birth : Dalkeith, Scotland

Height : 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)

Playing position : Midfielder

Current club : Manchester United

Number : 24

Youth career :

Tynecastle Boys Club

1995–2002 Manchester United

Senior career :

2001– Manchester United

National team :

Scotland U20

2002–2003 Scotland U21

Scotland B

2003– Scotland

Club career

Early career

Born in Dalkeith, Scotland, Fletcher has been at Manchester United for his entire career emanating upward from the youth team. He stringed Manchester United as a youth actor at the age of 11, and was set to become the youngest actor ever to emerge in the Manchester United first-team as shortly as he was chosen for the club's final fixture of the 1999–2000 FA Premier League season against Aston Villa on 14 May 2000; however, Premier League governs prohibit players on schoolboy contracts from emerging at the senior horizontal, and Fletcher's debut was delayed. He subsequently gestured a trainee contract in July 2000, ago signing his first businessman contract on his 17th birthday on 1 February 2001. Meanwhile, he slowly progressed through the club's youth teams, and was fraction of the park team that won the Manchester Senior Cup in 1999–2000. He was originally perceived as a right midfielder in the David Beckham mould and was tipped via a lot to breach into the first-team with relieve and remain there for a lot years to come,[6] but as he devised attended be sighted more as a interior midfielder. Over the following few seasons, Fletcher's involvement was limited due to various injuries, encompassing a breached foot; nevertheless, via the 2002–03 season, he had become a regular member of the park team, and afterwards a figure of arrivals as an unused substitute, he eventually prepared his first-team debut on 12 March 2003 – nearly three years behind timetable – beginning on the right side of midfield against Basel in the second team degree of the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League. He was substituted for David Beckham afterwards 73 minutes, but a second Champions League arrival chased against Deportivo de La Coruña a week subsequent, and he was dubbed as a substitute for both legs of the quarter-final tie against Real Madrid. For his plays for the park team during the 2002–03 season, Fletcher received the Denzil Haroun Reserve Player of the Year award.

2003–04 season

Fletcher snapped into the Manchester United team during the 2003–04 campaign, playing a figure of significant suits and beginning in United's 2004 FA Cup Final win across Millwall in May 2004.

2004–05 season

Despite a slow begin to the 2004–05 campaign, in which in the early fraction of the season he prepared very minority competitive arrivals, Fletcher again snapped into the United first-team. On 1 January 2005, Fletcher scored his first target at club horizontal in a 2–0 win across Middlesbrough.

2005–06 season

Fletcher was one of the players singled out for criticism via club captain Roy Keane in the wake of United's 4–1 defeat to Middlesbrough in October 2005. Keane reportedly said, "I can't interpret why citizens in Scotland rave approximate Darren Fletcher." However, Keane subsequent undertaken to set the record straight stating, "If you listen to any of my remarks across the final pair or three years, whether I've given any actor credit across the years it would be Fletch. Fletch shall tell you that himself." Fletcher went several way towards reacting his critics on six November 2005, with his performance in the crucial league suit at home to Chelsea, scoring the merely target of the game with a looping header. His winning target ended Chelsea's 40-match unbeaten run in the Premier League.

2006–07 season

In 2006–07, at first of the season he stored a position in the first-team but merely on the bench and scored in an away win across Charlton Athletic, as well as scoring the headed winner in the away game with Middlesbrough in December and another headed target in the home win against Charlton in February, earning it a double against the club that season. As the season progressed, Alex Ferguson favourite the midfield quartet of Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick and Ryan Giggs, limiting Fletcher to a minority substitute appearances. However, with Scholes absent through suspension, he prepared a starring arrival in United's 7–1 win across Roma in the Champions League quarter-final.

2007–08 season

In the 2007–08 season, with the further arrival at the club of fellow interior midfielders Owen Hargreaves and Anderson and winger Nani, Fletcher played even fewer than he did during the earlier season. As ago, Ferguson favourite Carrick, Scholes, Giggs and Ronaldo to him in midfield, and obtained even fewer playing-time than the fresh arrivals. He did, however, placed in several stalwart plays as shortly as given the chance, encompassing pair targets in the 4–0 defeat of Arsenal at Old Trafford in the FA Cup fourth round. Fletcher picked upward a Champions League winner's medal but was unused in the final.

2008–09 season

Fletcher playing for Manchester United

In the 2008–09 season, Fletcher began the first pair sport, due to injuries to Carrick and Ronaldo, and scored against Newcastle United at Old Trafford in United's first Premier League suit of the season, coercing a 1–1 draw afterwards Obafemi Martins' goal. Fletcher notched his second target of the season opportunity the scoring from plug range against Portsmouth, chasing a exceed from Patrice Evra. He was subsequent shown a yellow card on the 93rd tiny ago the suit ended 1–0. On three October 2008, Fletcher gestured a three-year extension to his contract with Man Utd, retaining him at the club until 2012. Fletcher notched his third target of the season against Everton on 25 October. He thereafter scored in the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup semi-final against Gamba Osaka on 18 December 2008 afterwards emanating off the bench. In the Champions League semi-final second leg against Arsenal on 5 May 2009, Fletcher was shown a red card governing him out of the Champions League Final. There were calls for this verdict to be overturned, but aside from erroneous identity, there is no attract method for red cards in UEFA competition. Manchester United launched an attract with UEFA to have the semi final red card overturned on 'compassionate' grounds on seven May 2009, but this was discarded on 11 May.

2009–10 season

The 2009–10 season saw Fletcher consolidate his position in the heart of the United midfield, beginning all of United's significant games. He unlatched his scoring bill for the season with a double in the first Manchester derby of the season, a memorable 4–3 victory for United, double placing United forward ago Michael Owen scored in the sixth tiny of added-time. He was awarded with the Barclays Man of the Match award for his performance. On 21 November 2009, Fletcher scored his third of the season, and arguably his best target for United, hammering a half volley from the fringe of the field into the lid corner paying United a 1–0 lead against Everton in a 3–0 win. This season has also perceived him and fellow midfielders Michael Carrick and Park Ji-Sung deputise in protection due to an injury emergency that retired Patrice Evra being the merely fit regular in defence. They motionless handled to retain a wash page against West Ham United and concede merely one target against Bundesliga heroes Wolfsburg in the Champions League. Fletcher was sent off during the suit against Birmingham on 9 January 2010 afterwards two bookable offences. On ten March, Fletcher scored the fourth target in a 4–0 win in the second leg of United's final 16 Champions League tie with Milan, earning the score 7–2 on aggregate. This was his first target in the Champions League. Following this, Fletcher captained United for the first time in the league suit against West Ham and was subsequent confirmed as United's vice-captain. In April, Fletcher capped a successful season with selection in the 2009–10 PFA Premier League Team of the Year. On 9 May 2010, the final day of the season, Fletcher scored the first target of a 4–0 win at home to Stoke City.

International career

Fletcher has deployed himself as a regular option for Scotland and scored his first target in a 1–0 win across Lithuania, having come off the bench for merely his second cap. His target took Scotland to the play-offs for Euro 2004 On 26 May 2004, he captained Scotland to a 1–0 friendly win against Estonia in Tallinn. This prepared him the youngest Scotland captain since John Lambie of Queen's Park led the side that defeat Ireland 7–2 on Saturday, twenty March 1886. Lambie was ageing just 17 years and 92 days.

Fletcher's advances for his national side was capped via a 25-metre attack in an October 2005 World Cup qualifier against Slovenia. Fletcher was Scotland's vice-captain beneath Alex McLeish, deputising in the absence of regular captain Barry Ferguson, but chasing thereafter the removal of Barry Ferguson as captain in 2009, Fletcher was dubbed as full time captain in November 2009.