Never back down: The Darren Fletcher experience

There are key moments, which often define a footballer’s career.

Zidane’s volley against Leverkusen, Aguero’s injury time league winner, Cantona’s audacious chip and Wayne Rooney’s overhead kick. These moments come to the biggest of players at the biggest of occasions. They prove the difference between a good player, and a player at their peak. Darren Fletcher however, never reached such a poetic crescendo. Instead, he was diagnosed with a condition that could’ve ended his life, let alone his career. Yet, like he had done time again, Fletcher fought the good fight. Though he might not have won, Fletcher’s career stands as the shining example of the indomitable spirit. A rare representation of true grit, in a world ruled by technical mastery.

Despite a rapid rise through the youth ranks of United, Darren Fletcher’s start was marred by injuries. Despite his undeniable talent, he flattered to deceive. Some parties believed that Fletcher’s selection was down to him being the only Scot in Sir Alex’s team. However, he slowly began winning everyone over. The Denzil Haroun Reserve Player of the Year award, stood as a first of many testaments of the Scot’s ability

This proved another struggle, as he often played second fiddle to the likes of Beckham and Keane. While other’s would’ve moved on to easier pastures, the competition only served to strengthen his resolve. His key performances leading up to United’s 2004 F.A Cup win, proved his utility as a squad player. He took every starting opportunity before him and began to establish himself.

With the departures of Keane and Beckham, Fletcher was pipped to be the cog in United’s midfield. However, Ferguson preferred the quartet of Hargreaves, Ronaldo, Nani and Scholes in midfield, pushing Fletcher further down the pecking order. When push inevitably came to shove, Fletcher solidified himself in the team once again. With the injury to Hargreaves, Fletcher added dynamism to the duo of Scholes and Carrick, and served as Untied’s power house midfielder, all through the 2008-09 Champions League campaign. A highly controversial yellow card ruled him out of the final, leading Barcelona’s to dismantle United at Rome. The game served to starkly highlight Fletcher’s irreplaceability. Jose Mourinho had famously commented before the final,

“Fletcher is more important than people think. His work in midfield, especially in the midfield ‘wars’, in crucial matches is very important. Man United will miss his pace and aggression in defensive actions: he ‘eats’ opponents in defensive transition. I believe Xavi and Andres Iniesta are happy Fletch is not playing.”

Wether or not Fletcher could’ve saved United against the best Barcelona generation since Cruyff, is debatable. However he would’ve given United something he always has- The Ability to fight.

Having being diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis before the final, Fletcher realised that he would’ve have to spend time on the sidelines. However, two whole years were longer than anyone expected. His departure from United didn’t leave them crippled, but it took away industry and belief, which they are yet to replicate. The likes of Anderson and Cleverley flattered to deceive, leaving the once feared United midfield, the weakest limb of their side. What was perhaps more painful than watching United’s midfield, was Fletcher’s own personal battle.

In a recent interview, Fletcher revealed what he had been going through. Before, fans found it hard to understand the rare ailment that inflicted him. After his reveal however, many were left feeling sick to their own stomach, after realising the agonies he had to endure.

The physical strain however was only part of it. The mental anguish he underwent was nothing short of traumatic. The sheer inability to do anything with his children, left Fletcher in a state of withdrawal few would comprehend. In the world of modern football, the most common mental issues we seem to find are when a striker goes through a dry spell, or when a team go on a losing run. What Fletcher had to undergo was slowly making him lose the will to live. He often had to come to terms with his own mortality, He once said,

‘But then that day arrives, when you realise that life is just non-existent, you are almost begging them to take you. You go from putting off surgery and being petrified of it to this sense of desperation; you’re that low, you’re like “take me now”.’

Apart from the scores of United fans, supporting all the way, Fletcher also had a very close aid. The biggest man at Old Trafford, Sir Alex, was personal source of comfort in Fletcher’s most painful moments. He dealt with the injury the utmost respect and privacy. Fletcher would often wonder what part he had to play in United’s future. Ferguson understood Feltcher’s struggle, yet believed more than anyone (even Fletcher himself) that he was going to fight it off, much like he had done everything in his life.

Early this season, Fletcher began to re-emerge. However six years of battling with an illness that seriously undermined his ability to make the most of the considerable talent he possesses. He showed pangs of his old ability against Real Madrid, in a preseason game, yet it only served as a simmer of greatness amongst moments of mediocrity.

Darren Fletcher will never be etched into the echleons of United’s history, yet he is a player who deserves every ounce of respect one can give. United’s own midfield virtuoso, Paul Scholes spoke at length about his unmatched moral character.

No one would have blamed him if he had decided to call it a day. He took a while to make up his mind over whether to have the operation on his large intestine, which was a success and put him on the road to a comeback two years ago.
Fletch’s experience with ulcerative colitis was horrendous. The closest I got to a career-ending condition was a dispersed blood clot on my eye that clouded my vision.

In an age where United’s youth are slowly rising to the challenges of the first team, their hopes and ambition are driven by the successes of The Class of ’92. The example of Fletcher should be one they draw inspiration from in their moments of truest self doubt.

In many ways he embodied the true values that formed the very fabric of the club. He wasn’t always the hero United wanted, but he was definitely the one they needed, and more importantly, deserved.

photo credits: Getty images, Barclays photo stream

The King’s last bow: The glorious tale of Thierry Henry

When I was younger I was trying to do what I wanted to do, not what the game wanted me to do.

-Thierry Henry

King Henry the VIIth separated the Church and state, leaving an unforgettable mark on European History

Thierry Henry separated the defences of his opponents, leaving behind an unforgettable mark on European football.

Through his career, Theirry Henry acquired greatness goals and gold. With an admirable amount of trophies to his name, Henry’s hunger kept him going beyond most reasonable expectations. Plying his trade in five different countries, Henry amassed over 400 goals, 100 assists, and scores upon scores of admirers.
Perhaps the most enduring aspect of his career, is they way in which he graced every grain of grass he came upon. From Highbury to Hampden Park, Henry’s career has changed what the world expects of a world class striker.

Fancy footwork and bright beginnings

Projected to be more of a winger as he progressed through Clairefontaine, the French Football Federation academy, that produced the likes of David Trezeguet and Nicolas Anelka, Thierry Henry’s greatness was discovered at a very early age. It was from here, that Henry met the spectre thin, spectacled frame of a figure we now know as Arsene Wenger. The friendship formed between the two, would go on to define Henry’s career in ways he had not begun to fathom.

After Wenger signed him on to Monaco, Henry, plying his trade on the left wing, lifted the Ligue Un title. Following a wasteful year at Juventus under Carlo Ancelotti, Henry was brought to Arsenal by Wenger, in a move that would serve epochal in the North London clubs’ history. Wenger believed that his rare blend of speed, technique, size and vision, made him the perfect forward for the modern game, even if he was one far removed from traditional British ideas about the No. 9.

The start of one of English football’s greatest friendships

Working diligently, Henry quickly matured into the most feared striker in England, ending up the top league scorer four times (hitting the magical 30-goal mark once).His trademark finish, sliding into the box from the left, opening his body and side-footing a right-footed shot inside the far post, became a weekly sight around the country.

Whatever Arsenal’s form dictated in the day, Goalkeepers around the league would come into the game, without the slightest clue as to what special trick Henry would deploy.

 “What is remarkable is he doesn’t have the game of a goalscorer” lamented Arsene Wenger, “He has the game of a football player”

Henry became the apex of Wenger’s unique brand of total football. Building play from the wing, finding spaces in the blink of an eye, and finishing everywhere with the inside of his right foot, Thierry Henry was every inch, invincible. His 24 goals and 24 assists during the Invincibles run, just highlight his own personal importance in a magnificent side of team players.

The bitter pill that ended Henry’s Arsenal affair

However, after a heartbreaking Champions League final loss in 2006, Henry painfully realised that the club were not heading in the direction he had hoped. They had gone without silverware for three years, and were celebrating a fourth place finish, and not a first place victory. The time had inevitably come, and Henry left Arsenal.

What proceeded thence was a spell at Barcelona, where Henry fulfilled his ultimate dreams. Despite playing third fiddle to an attack trio of himself, Eto’o and Ronaldinho, Henry lifted the only silverware missing from his glittering CV- The UEFA Champions League.

Reflections are best seen in sterling silver

In many ways Barcelona became a step down for Henry. He was no longer the big fish he was accustomed to being at Arsenal, yet he played a respectable part in a team that is regarded as one of the greatest sides in modern football. Seven titles in eight years was in many ways, a material representation of the stature he possessed; forever hungry, forever fantastic.

Henry’s contribution to the national team, still however remains a confounding black mark, on an otherwise spotless career. Dazzling the international scene, a young Henry was a key member of Les Blues consecutive World Cup (98) and European Championship (2000) sides, that  solidified France as the world’s footballing superpower. His goals proved vital, and his presence potent. His proficiency for the French is exacerbated by the fact, that beyond after his retirement, France are nowhere closer to finding a number 9 of his quality .

A handball against the Republic of Ireland in a World Cup play-off, an incident that ultimately qualified his country for the 2010 tournament in South Africa but also sparked a rare spell of public criticism, also ensured the often-fickle French public remained cool towards him. For whatever reason, he was not beloved by the French public as much as players like Trezeguet and Petit, who weren’t even close in stature.

He had his fair share of detractors. Johann Crochet, chief editor Goal France once said,

“That handball against Ireland in 2009 meant a lot of French people were not proud of qualifying. Not only did he cheat, but he reacted poorly afterwards, chatting away with Richard Dunne. A second issue is his perceived arrogance – if French people call you arrogant then you must be doing something wrong, And the way he celebrated his goals – or rather the way he didn’t – made him look bored to fans”

However badly the media portrayed it, Henry always found his French teammates, fighting in his defence. Amongst them, Emmanuel Petit famously said

“In England, they’ve built a statue of Thierry.That means a lot. He is revered there. This bad image [according to L’Equipe] of Thierry Henry, it annoys me. I have great difficulty with the French. I have never seen such arrogant, smug, lying and hypocritical people.”

Whichever way it’s looked, Henry still remains his country’s all time leading goal scorer with 51 scalps. He’s won the French Player of the Year twice, and won everything that there is to win with Les Blues, he’s given nothing else than 100% for his national team, something that can be said for only a small hand full of his national team compatriots.

Henry’s legacy was re-established when he returned to Arsenal on loan in 2012, for The New York Red Bulls. The appreciation of his presence was not felt at the Emirates alone, stadia around England stood up in gratitude to witness, perhaps for the last time, the magic on the Frenchman. Upon taking the field as a substitute against Leeds, Henry’s arrival was meet with choric reverie. HIs goal, only minutes later however, was met with a cheer that would put the Sistine Chapel to shame. It was quintessential Henry. Moments like that are why his legacy will endure.

As French football evolves as rapidly as it has under Deschamps, Henry will still be looked upon by the current crop with much admiration. A pioneer, a perfectionist, a player, who was governed by little else, than his love for the game.

After all,It had to be, Thierry Henry.

as the saying goes, a canon is always cast in Bronze

Merci Titi