Patrice Evra says he knows exactly how Darren Fletcher feels at the prospect of missing out on the Champions League final, because he lived for a week with the same dread.
Italian referee Roberto Rosetti dismissed Fletcher for his late challenge on Cesc Fàbregas, but replays showed Fletcher touched the ball before he sent Fàbregas flying. The Euro 2008 official, though, decided the Scot had denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity and sent Fletcher off. As there is no appeals procedure, Fletcher will miss the final against either Chelsea or Barcelona in Rome on 27 May unless Rosetti has a change of heart.
"I am so sorry for Darren Fletcher," said Evra. "The real big bad news about all this is Darren not being able to play in Rome. I am very, very frustrated and disappointed for him and his family."
After picking up a booking in the first leg, Evra knew another would lead to him missing out as well. He avoided that last night, though was thankful Ferguson decided to take him off once Manchester United had scored their third in the remarkable 3-1 win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
"I played with a lot of pain in my stomach worrying about missing the final," he said. "I said to the boss if we score a third goal I want to come off because I just cannot miss that match.
"It was a real fear for me. In the hotel before the game and all during the previous week I was thinking about that yellow card. I believed United would get to the final but I wasn't sure I would. It was very painful to play with that on your mind."
Michael Carrick, meanwhile, has backed Ferguson's call for the referee to "take another look" at the decision. Despite Carrick's elation at reaching Rome on 27 May, he could not help but feel sorry for Fletcher, who trooped sadly out of the Emirates Stadium last night and sat alone on the United team bus to contemplate his fate.
"It is just so harsh for Darren," Carrick said. "He has been unbelievable this season and when a situation arises like that it is so hard to take. It was not deserved because we can all see the referee might have got it wrong. I could not believe it when the red card came out.
"You can't blame the referee because these things happen. Hopefully something can be done to change it and he will be available for the final because we don't want him to miss out."
United are now on course to repeat the Premier League-European double from last year, hosting Manchester City on Sunday knowing they only require seven points from four games to retain the title. With the Carling Cup and Fifa Club World Cup trophies already won, it could be a golden year for the Old Trafford outfit, although Carrick is taking nothing for granted.
"Nothing has been won yet," he said. "We still have a lot of tough games coming up. We just have to be ready for Sunday and the games after that. Hopefully we can go into the final as champions."
