Owen would have scored that easily

Darren Fletcher's two-year-old twin sons are still a bit young for Hans Christian Andersen's fairytales but The Ugly Duckling is one bedtime read which should certainly resonate with their father.

The Scot's slow-burn metamorphosis into a midfield swan has startled many of those formerly sniffy Manchester United supporters who once routinely greeted his inclusion on Sir Alex Ferguson's team-sheet with ill-suppressed oaths. Indeed many still seem unsure precisely how the man they used to dub "Darren Bloody Fletcher" imperceptibly transformed himself into the team's Mr Indispensable.

Fletcher was certainly badly missed when suspension denied him duels with Xavi Hernández and Andrés Iniesta during last May's European Cup final defeat by Barcelona, and it would be a major shock were Ferguson to exclude him from this evening's date with Arsenal.

"United fans used to have a downer on Darren," said Terry Butcher who, as Scotland's assistant manager, regularly coaches Fletcher. "But he's a complete midfielder, a rare all-rounder and although he's a slightly different player to Roy Keane, he can become as great."

That is some compliment for a 25-year-old who has spent several seasons in Keane's shadow, enduring the whole gamut of unflattering comparisons with United's former captain. While still a teenager, moreover, he had already, harshly, been dubbed "the poor man's David Beckham".

"Darren was a central midfielder when I first saw him playing for Scotland Under-15s," Butcher added. "He only moved to the right for a while because that was where Sir Alex had room for him."

Long-term injuries to Keane's supposed successor Owen Hargreaves allied to Michael Carrick's issues with tackling and the gradual waning of Paul Scholes's star have subsequently re-acquainted Fletcher with the anchoring position he is fast making his own.

Despite sometimes deploying him in a more attacking role in Scotland colours – when he is as good as regarded as a tartan Steven Gerrard – Butcher believes that at Old Trafford Fletcher now dictates matters. "Darren can get games by the scruff of the neck and inject pace and tempo," the former England captain said. "He understands the game, reads it well, is improving all the time and United rely heavily on him."

There was a time when many would have scoffed at such praise. Those were the days when the player's admirable box- to-box energy was frequently undone by needless concessions of possession and seemingly wayward positional sense. Happily, maturity is increasingly highlighting his technical ability and emphasising that a player who maybe once tried to do too much, too fast, boasts a decent football brain after all.

Fletcher certainly has good taste in role models and recently nominated Fernando Redondo, the former Argentina and Real Madrid anchorman, as his hero. "I loved the way Redondo played, how he sat deep and controlled games," said the midfielder, whose tag in the Old Trafford food chain has shifted from "weak link" through "workhorse" to "the most underrated player in the Premier League".

As befits the occupant of a position demanding both extreme selflessness and supreme self-confidence, Fletcher has consistently resisted the urge to crow at former critics, never rising to the tempting bait. Ironically perhaps, the most cutting put-down was delivered by Keane four years ago, the Ipswich manager reflecting, somewhat b****ily: "I can't understand why people in Scotland rave about Darren Fletcher."

Ouch. Yet in reality Keane rather liked the kid, becoming his mentor. "Roy was probably the biggest influence on my career," Fletcher has said. "Roy made me realise what it means to be a Manchester United player."

It also helped that Sir Alex took an almost paternal interest in the gawky, teetotal youngster from a family of agricultural workers who grew up on a sprawling council estate outside Edinburgh.

"You'd be proud to have Darren as your son," said Butcher. "He's a lovely, honest boy. He's in love with football and, to me, he's a bit of a throwback." . Interestingly while Fletcher – ever ready to pass unselfishly to a better-placed, more extravagantly talented team-mate – dreams of evolving into an unfussily dominant Redondo-type figure, Butcher feels that his attacking inclinations and regular goalscoring exploits evoke comparisons with a more exalted name.

"To me, Darren's almost a Bobby Charlton-type player. OK, Sir Bobby got a few more goals, especially from long range, but Darren's a very good passer and crosser, he's box to box and can play anywhere across midfield."

If some Stretford Enders still regard such accolades as sacrilege, it does not diminish their new-found devotion to United's ugly duckling. As Butcher puts it: "Darren Fletcher is simply a very good footballer."
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