Louis Van Gaal's Decision to Let Darren Fletcher Leave Could Backfire

It looks very much like Manchester United's longest-serving player will leave the club this month.

According to reports, notably by the Press Association Sport (h/t Paul Hirst in the Independent), Darren Fletcher will be allowed to leave Old Trafford on a free transfer, with either West Ham or West Brom keen on bringing his experience in to help their respective causes.

On the surface, it seems an understandable move for all concerned. Fletcher hasn't been a regular in Louis van Gaal's first team this season, making just five starts in all competitions and seven further appearances off the bench.

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

At almost 31 (his birthday is February 1), Fletcher will want to maximise the number of games he can play in the remainder of his career, particularly as he has missed so much with various injuries over the past few years. Indeed, having missed such long spells with ulcerative colitis, he might be keen to make up for lost time.

Equally, whoever Fletcher goes to will get a hugely experienced player who, for West Brom at least, will be a valuable asset in their scrap against relegation, while he would provide West Ham with another handy option in midfield.

However, it does seem a slightly curious decision for Van Gaal to let a player of Fletcher's experience and calibre go at this point in the season.

For a start, at the beginning of the season, Van Gaal signalled the Scot's importance to the team as a leader, after appointing Wayne Rooney as his captain.

Van Gaal said, as quoted by the Guardian:

"

Darren Fletcher will become the vice-captain. Darren is a natural leader and will captain the team when Wayne isn’t playing Darren is a very experienced player and a very popular member of the dressing room, I know he will work well alongside Wayne.

"

Quite apart from this, Fletcher's departure could leave United looking a little thin in terms of midfield depth.

Their other options in the middle include Michael Carrick, about whom there has been much debate over his career but even his most strident defenders could hardly argue that he is a consistent big-game player. There is also Marouane Fellaini, who can look like a powering behemoth flattening all in his path, or a shambling walking error, a liability and potential disaster zone—there seems to be little between.

Rui Vieira/Associated Press

He also has Ander Herrera, but Van Gaal appears not to trust him for whatever reason, as the Spaniard has only started two games since returning from injury at the end of November, and one of those was against Yeovil in the FA Cup. And finally there's Daley Blind and Wayne Rooney, both of whom are currently best deployed at the back and up front, respectively.

Therefore, it would seem sensible, unless United are planning to dip into the transfer market themselves (which Miguel Delaney on ESPN FC suggests they are not), to keep hold of Fletcher as an insurance policy.

Indeed, Fletcher has shown that he is still capable of performing in big games, as he did with some fine pressing and tackling against Bayern Munich in the Champions League last season. With some important encounters coming up, Fletcher could still have been useful.

Darren Fletcher's departure from Manchester United will not have a seismic impact on their season or chances of qualifying for the Champions League, but Louis van Gaal's decision to let him go now still feels like something of a gamble.