Divided last week, united this. Wayne Rooney knows the joking with Darren Fletcher will stop in Turkey on Tuesday.

Rooney's elation at England's qualification for the World Cup has been matched by Fletcher's misery at Scotland missing out.

Compassion has been in short supply at Manchester United's Carrington training ground this week.

Rooney is known to be one of United's more obvious wind-up merchants. And Fletcher has not been spared.

"Darren has had some stick," the £27million striker told MUTV.

"There is still a rivalry between Scotland and England, so while we are sad for him, that is about it in terms of feeling sorry that they haven't qualified.

"It's fair to say there has been quite a bit of banter."

Rooney has presumably maintained a dignified silence when his manager was in earshot given Sir Alex Ferguson's regret that the Tartan Army will not be in South Africa next year.

However, he knows Fletcher will be a key man in Europe this season.

United begin their quest to reach a third successive Champions League final against Besiktas on Tuesday.

Memories of that mauling by Barcelona in last year's final are still fresh.

At the time, Fletcher's absence through suspension was highlighted as the crucial factor.

The Scot has to live with those plaudits, even if he is not taking them too seriously.

"People talk about Rome but sometimes you become a better player by not playing," he said.

"I have heard that a lot. But people tend to notice you more because you are not there."

Nevertheless, Fletcher is likely to be one of the first names on Ferguson's team sheet in Istanbul, even if changes are certain from the side on duty at Tottenham in the Premier League.

The departures of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez might have shorn United of two players integral to their recent European success but others, like Michael Owen and Antonio Valencia, are ready to step in.

Fletcher though is just looking to maintain the improvement of the previous 12 months, believing continuity of selection turned out to be a major factor.

"Last season was a big step for me," he said.

"There are some great midfielders at the club but I managed to get into the team for the start of the season and stay there for most of it.

"My performances improved because I was playing most weeks."

John O'Shea is a major doubt, although the presence of Rio Ferdinand counter-balances the Irishman's likely absence with a calf injury sustained on Republic of Ireland duty in Cyprus last weekend.

Sandwiched in between two high-profile league games - Manchester City come to Old Trafford next Sunday - Ferguson will want to utilise the depth of his squad.

He will want to make a positive start though, having experienced plenty of struggles in the Turkish capital before.

Certainly defeat needs to be avoided if United's other opening phase opponents, CSKA Moscow and German champions Wolfsburg, are not to become more daunting foes than they are.

At least the Red Devils do have some freshness, with Ryan Giggs among those to benefit from a fortnight away from the international spotlight.

"I definitely feel the benefit," said the former Wales skipper.

"Maybe it is more obvious later in the season but not playing international football allows you to do more conditioning work and improve aspects of your play you otherwise would not have chance to do."