Darren Fletcher tells what Fergie told him to do after being made Man Utd interim coach

Darren Fletcher immediately spoke to Sir Alex Ferguson after taking on the interim Manchester United head coach role and he gave him some valuable advice.

It has been a remarkable few days at Old Trafford, where Ruben Amorim’s 14-month reign ended on Monday having failed to oversee the progress expected by the club hierarchy.

Amorim’s inability to help United evolve damages their chances of fulfilling their ambition to mark the club’s 150th anniversary by winning a 21st league title by 2028.

Ferguson is the last United manager to have masterminded a Premier League triumph back in 2013 and Fletcher spoke to his former boss before temporarily stepping up from under-18s coach for Wednesday’s trip to Burnley and perhaps beyond.

“I have (spoken to him),” the former midfielder said. “I don’t like to make any major decisions or things without speaking to Sir Alex and that’s something I’ve done since I’ve been at the club and since I’ve left the club in everything I do.

“I’ve got a really good relationship with Sir Alex, so he’s probably the first person that phoned actually, so I wanted to speak to him first and ultimately to get his blessing, to be perfectly honest with you. I think he deserves that respect.

“I wanted to run it by him, what he thought, and he was supportive of it and he echoed my thoughts which I’ve always said – it’s your job to do the best for Manchester United.

“When you’re an employee of the club, it’s your job to do your best for Manchester United and it’s amazing when he says something that I try and live and believe every day, so it was comforting for me for him to say that.”

Fletcher has been unable to speak to, or get hold of, predecessor Amorim since becoming United’s sixth caretaker appointment since Ferguson retired.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was among those and went on to become one of the six full-time managers since 2013 – and could yet return as caretaker after the club spoke to him and others on Tuesday.

Some former United managers have expressed concern about the powerful voices of successful former players, but Fletcher believes you have to embrace such scrutiny at “the biggest club in the world”.

“You can’t ask them to go easier because they’re passionate guys and I think they have a right to have their opinion and they’re really good,” he said of the likes of Gary Neville, Roy Keane and Paul Scholes.

“They’re engaging, they’re good to listen to. I enjoy listening to them. I had years of listening to them in the dressing room and I used to sit and listen to them, used to take it all in.”

Fletcher went on to speak about the continued support of United fans during down times and then said: “Outside noise, ex-players, it’s difficult to deal with, it’s not easy because those players have won everything.

“They’ve got success behind them, they’ve got trophies, so it’s hard to criticise them back because they’ve got their medals on the table, so it’s really, really difficult.

“But, again, that’s what it is being a Manchester United player. Get your head around it, learn how you’re going to deal with it, and embrace the challenge.”