Darren Fletcher has received a lot of plaudits for the way he has successfully returned from his injury troubles of recent years. Manchester United midfielder was a regular in the squad in the second half of last season. However, his problems in recent years appears to have taken his form out of the game and it may be a while before he regains it. Until then, his Manchester United future will be under speculation. Fletcher has admitted this and says that the upcoming campaign is very important for his career.
The 30-year-old is aware that his playing days are coming to an end and he may be playing at the top only for a couple of years. The Scottish international will find it hard to establish himself in the Manchester United team this time around. Primarily this is due to the lack of matches for the former Premier League champions, as they are not involved in European competitions. Premier League, FA Cup, and League Cup will be the tournaments they will be involved. Fletcher is primarily targeting fitness in the pre-season. After almost 18 months without playing football, his fitness has suffered.
United have taken Fletcher to the United States as part of their pre-season tour. This is certain to end speculation that he may be sold this summer.
“Players always talk about how important pre-season is and I haven’t been in a position to do pre-season for about three years, so I’m dead excited about it. It almost brings you back to a level playing field with everyone else – you’re back at the same time as everyone else, rather than playing catch-up all season, which can be difficult. It’s the ideal scenario for me. I’m really looking forward to building up my fitness base as best as I can,” said Fletcher.