Aberdeen Buchan started his professional career with his hometown club
Aberdeen. He captained the team when they won the
1970 Scottish Cup Final 3–1 against
Jock Stein's
Celtic.
Manchester United Buchan was signed by
Manchester United manager
Frank O'Farrell on 29 February 1972 for £120,000, and at the time was the club's record signing. His first game for United came on 4 March 1972 against
Tottenham in the
First Division. He was unable to prevent United from suffering relegation to the
Second Division in
1973–74. However, United bounced back at the first attempt as Second Division champions. Buchan became club captain in 1975 following the departure of
Willie Morgan. Buchan helped United win the
1977 FA Cup Final against
Liverpool, which they won 2–1. This meant that Buchan became the only player to captain both Scottish and English FA Cup-winning sides. He also helped United reach another FA Cup final in
1979, where they lost 3–2 to
Arsenal. He was still with United when they beat
Brighton 4–0 in the replayed
1983 FA Cup Final, but he did not make the team for the final. Buchan left the club in August 1983 after injuries caught up with him, signing for
Oldham Athletic on a free transfer. He had played in 456 games, scoring 4 goals, one of which was a superb, yet somewhat uncharacteristic, long-range drive against Everton.
International Buchan won 34
caps for
Scotland, making his international debut in 1971 against
Portugal and his last appearance in 1978 against the same country. He played in the
1974 and
1978 World Cup finals and captained Scotland twice: in 1975 against
Romania and in 1977 against
Argentina. ==After playing==