Darren Fletcher 'has been Manchester United's peacemaker this season'

Manchester United's turbulent season has been eased by the presence of 'popular' technical director Darren Fletcher, reports claim.

United have endured a difficult campaign that has already seen the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, with the Red Devils quickly falling out of the race for the title and their major signings - Cristiano Ronaldo, Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane - struggling to shine at times.

There has already been reports of a divide between Ronaldo and interim boss Ralf Rangnick, with the Portugese forward linked with an exit this summer after a handful of off-colour displays that saw him storm down the tunnel at full time.

But it has been former midfielder Fletcher that has been the club's saving grace, acting as 'peacemaker' amid the tension-fuelled season, according to the Sun - with players warming to his presence.

His input in the team is seen as 'so important' at a time where the players are struggling to adapt to Rangnick's pressing system, as well as the guidance from the German's assistant Chris Armas.

The 38-year-old joined United as a schoolboy in 1995 and went on to play 342 times for the club, winning five Premier League titles, the League Cup, FA Cup and Champions League - and is a cult figure among fans.

And the new generation of players have also taken a quick liking to him as he is acting as the voice of reason during a difficult season at Old Trafford.

A report in Spain last month claimed Ronaldo's relationship with Rangnick was 'totally fractured', with the former Real Madrid and Juventus star believed to be leading stars feeling the ex-Leipzig boss is 'out of his depth'.

Ronaldo is United's top scorer this season with 15 but has scored just once this calendar year and is rumoured to be contemplating an exit.

Fletcher has quickly taken up an influential role at the club, having initially coached their academy before becoming first team coach and then technical director.

He will be in charge of picking United's next boss, and has also been overseeing the club's youngsters and those out on loan.

Speaking about the current batch of talent currently looking to impress at other clubs, he spoke about the importance of 'not piling pressure' on youngsters and said he was excited to see what the future would bring.

'We have to manage the balance between allowing them to develop and creating the right steps for that, without piling the pressure onto them,' he said at a Fans' Forum event.

'Along with (head of academy Nick Cox), I'm looking at how we best use the loan system to give academy players invaluable experience at other clubs.

'We currently have 13 young players and academy products on loan and playing regularly in other divisions or leagues.

'Hopefully we'll see players like Brandon Williams, Teden Mengi, Jimmy Garner, Ethan Laird, Tahiti Chong, and Amad Diallo reap the benefits of that. All of them are doing really well on loan and we're excited to bring them back in pre-season to see how they fare with our first-team players.'