There are plenty of United fans, myself included, who have been forced to eat their words where Darren Fletcher is concerned, following a good few seasons for the club, improving with each one. Whilst for the past couple of seasons he was more famed for his appearances in the ‘big games’, it’s hard to argue with him being given a starting place in any match, considering his form at the moment.

Ferguson recently revealed that Fletcher had been considering leaving in the summer, after possibly seeing Paul Scholes, Michael Carrick, Owen Hargreaves and Anderson all ahead of him for the two central midfield places. Ferguson convinced him to stay, thankfully, as injuries to our midfielders has left that area depleted, and we’ve also got to see what a good player Fletcher is developing in to.

Don’t forget, the lad is just 24-years-old, some way off his peak, signalling maybe we’ve been a tad premature in writing him off as a United player.

Ferguson has been widely criticised by reds for giving Fletcher too much time and giving him too many chances, arguably because of his nationality, but yet again it appears as though the manager has been right to afford Fletcher this time to develop.

Fletcher has no confirmed that this is where he wants to stay and that he is determined to keep his place in the team.

“Manchester United are a great club and I don’t want to go anywhere else,” said Fletcher. “I just go into every game and do my best in the hope it is enough to keep me in the team.”

He was also United’s top scorer at the beginning of the season and admits he likes seeing his name on the scoresheet.

“It’s great to add goals to my game,” he said. “I would love to sneak a few more as well but the most important thing is actually getting into the box and making the chances. The manager has been very encouraging and I have a lot more confidence to try my luck. In the past, I may have been a little too worried about holding my position and watching for counter-attacks. But now I am more selfish and a bit more adventurous.”

Does Fletcher have a future here?