Darren Fletcher “had to be restrained” by another Man United staff member, according to a match referee, and the manager was accused of hurling a series of insults towards a referee.
Fletcher was handed a three-match suspension and £7,500 fine for misconduct last week by the Football Association.
The penalty followed an angry half-time rant against the officials. Brentford last month.
Fletcher had angrily protested that referee Samuel Barrott forced Matthijs de Ligt to leave the field to receive treatment for a profusely bleeding head injury, and Brentford scored from the resulting corner.
The Man United manager continued his protests in the half-time tunnel to Barrott and fourth official Gavin Ward.
Written reasons for Darren Fletcher’s three-match ban have been revealed
The Manchester United coaching team protested Matthijs de Ligt being forced to leave the pitch for treatment against Brentford, and the Bees scored from a subsequent corner.
The Independent Regulatory Commission has revealed the written reasons for Fletcher’s sanction, with Barrott, Ward and the two assistant referees detailing Fletcher’s conduct.
“After the half-time whistle and as I was walking down the tunnel, Manchester United’s Darren Fletcher approached me in an extremely aggressive manner, pointing at me and shouting ‘you’re all shit, that’s a fucking joke, every fucking week,'” Fourth Officer Ward told the Commission.
‘I asked him to calm down and stressed to him that his behavior was completely unacceptable at this time.
He then had to be restrained by another member of staff while he tried to approach me. With this, I turned around and continued walking towards the match officials’ locker room.
“Once in the locker room and when the other match officials arrived, I informed them of Mr. Fletcher’s conduct.”
The Commission stated that it had viewed video evidence from the tunnel of the incident, stating that Fletcher had “became agitated and began to protest with the Fourth Officer, making hand gestures, shouting and attempting to approach the Fourth Officer in a confrontational manner.” . manner.
“He is then held back and rejected by a Manchester United colleague.”
The panel stated that while there was no sound on the camera footage, it “showed Fletcher ‘acting in a manner that we consider aggressive.'”
Several United staff members were cautioned after De Ligt was forced to leave the pitch.
Fletcher apologized for his actions and claimed that his reaction was triggered by the goal, stating that he would have acted differently if he had had a period to cool down.
The Manchester United manager stated that his words were “a criticism of the football player’s medical treatment management process in particular in this matter and in reference to an incident in a previous home match where at a similar stage of the game an incorrectly given a red card. to a Manchester United player.
The Commission noted Fletcher’s good disciplinary record in his playing and coaching career, but his other requests for mitigation were rejected.
The Commission ruled that the three-match touchline suspension was “a fair and reasonable sanction given the confrontational behavior shown in the video evidence and the fact that there was an opportunity to leave the protest with the Fourth Referee, but Mr. Fletcher decided to continue.”
Man United had come from behind to beat Brentford 2-1 in one of the last games of Erik ten Hag’s time as coach.
Fletcher reportedly had to be restrained by staff as he continued his protests at half-time.
Fletcher served the first man of his suspension on the wing against Leicester last weekend, but will remain suspended for Ruben Amorim’s first games in charge against Ipswich and Everton.
During a 13-year playing career at Old Trafford, Fletcher made 342 appearances and scored 24 goals in all competitions for United.
In 2020, Fletcher returned to his boyhood club as a manager and was then appointed as the club’s technical director before being replaced in the role by Jason Wilcox in April.
Fletcher’s twin sons are part of United’s academy, and England youth international Jack was named on the bench against Brentford.