Sir Alex has always liked to have plenty of midfield options at his disposal, but it’s doubtful he’s ever had quite the plethora of choices that he has currently.
Even with Paul Scholes still missing through injury – he’s due back next month – the Reds boss has big decisions to make in selecting the personnel to man his Reds engine room.
So far this term, Darren Fletcher has been a fixture in the side with his partners, be it one or two players, being rotated alongside him. It’s a situation the Scot is enjoying, although it does mean that he has to adapt his style.
“We’ve all got to complement each other and you sacrifice certain parts of your game when you’re playing with certain people,” he told United Review.
“Maybe sometimes I have to hold back a bit more because there’s someone else who likes getting forward, like Anderson, or maybe there’s another holding midfielder and that gives you license to get forward more.”
Fletcher’s forays forward have resulted in him netting three times already this season, his latest goal coming at Everton last month. It’s an area of his game he’s enjoying but he’s not about to get too gung-ho.
“Here at United, you learn how to play in so many different ways," he explained. "I like to think that I can be a box-to-box midfielder and contribute both going forward and in defence.
"There’s no such thing as just a holding midfielder or just a traditional central midfielder. We all need to know how to adapt and play in the right way for each game.”