Phil Jones has officially announced his retirement from football, sharing his plans to move into management. Here at Football Fixtures, the former Manchester United man’s journey in football has always fascinated us.
Once heralded as a future England captain, Jones signed for United back in 2011 from Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £16.5M. He arrived with a huge reputation, with comparisons to the likes of Tony Adams and John Terry.
On one hand, you can say he had a successful career, having won a league title with United in 2013, making 17 appearances that season. However, as is the case with many talented young players, Jones’ career failed to hit the heights it was once predicted to. We want to take a look at why.
A career blighted by injury 🩼
As we know, injuries are a part of football. Jones never really showed signs of being an injury-prone player at Blackburn. He was a durable defender, who occasionally filled in in midfield. He did pick up a knee injury in his breakout season in Lancashire, but it didn’t seem like it was going to be a long term problem.
After managing 26 appearances in the league, and two in cup matches, Jones did enough to convince legendary ex-United gaffer Sir Alex Ferguson to sign him up. He demonstrated his ability to compete in the air, his tidiness on the ball, and an outstanding engine. He also appeared to be a real leader, often found barking at his teammates and taking responsibility whenever required. The world was truly at his feet.
But his time at Old Trafford was completely and utterly disrupted by frequent injury issues. Constant knee and back problems were the bane of his career, with the occasional hamstring injury rearing its ugly head. But we think there’s something rather peculiar about his tenure in Manchester that extends beyond his ability to stay fit.
Blind faith? 🤔
Teams often show faith in injury-prone players, particularly when they are believed to be difference makers when fit. Former Tottenham Hotspur defender Ledley King essentially had one knee for a lot of his time in North London, but such was his ability when available, the powers that be kept him around.
Jones, despite showing early promise, never pulled up any trees when he was playing. In fact, he became a bit of a meme. You were never too far from a picture of him pulling a questionable face when trying to defend. He was often at fault for goals his side conceded and he struggled to find any real form.
He was given a new four year contract in 2015, and went on to make just 75 league appearances in eight years. In his time at United he managed 27 caps for England, with his most recent coming back in 2018. So, why was he kept at the club for so long? It’s not as if The Red Devils were short of homegrown English talent. He wasn’t better than any of their defensive options. He didn’t have that special kind of talent that you persist with in the hope that one day he can shake off his fitness woes.
With all that said, we think we’ve figured out why Jones was kept for so long…
Fergie’s Bold Claim
In 2013, Sir Alex Ferguson famously claimed that Phil Jones could be Manchester United’s best ever player, yep, best ever. Fergie has managed the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, Eric Cantona, and Roy Keane, but according to the Scottsman, Jones could have surpass them all.
We think this is the reason Jones was able to remain at United for the time he did. After such a dauntless cosign from arguably the greatest football manager of all time, Jones was able to represent United for 12 years. Bear in mind this is the same Sir Alex Ferguson who said in his 2013 autobiography that Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard was “not a top, top player.”
Was it a case of saving face? Was Jones’ continued employment down to the fact that Fergie might’ve had egg on his face had he departed sooner? We think this may well be the case. You would be forgiven for thinking Jones left years ago, he hardly featured in his latter years at the club and you never heard a peep from him off the field.
Jones is still only 32 years old. Although his playing days have come to an end, he could still have a lot to offer as a coach, and ultimately a manager. We wish him all the best for the future – but he owes Fergie a portion of any future earnings 😄
