Source: Daily_Mail
The Fletcher factor: Was he used to kick the Arsenal team off their stride?
So was Arsene Wenger right about Darren Fletcher?
He didn't name names, but the implication of the Arsenal manager's accusations against Manchester United was that the Scotland midfielder was the player under orders to knock his talented youngsters out of their stride by fouling them.
The stats back Wenger up. Fletcher gave away half-a-dozen free kicks, twice the number of any other player on the field. And he's up there in the top six for the most fouls conceded this season - despite playing in only TWO of United's Barclays Premier League games. Surprisingly, he got away without a yellow card in both Saturday's encounter with the Gunners and the clash at Wigan.
But could there have been another reason why Fletcher was so fired up at the weekend? Maybe it was the memory of last season's Champions League semi against Arsenal when he was sent off after Cesc Fabregas tumbled easily under his challenge. It meant Fletcher was banned from the final.
