Am I misremembering it or did he have an absolute stormer on his debut for us? Seem to remember he played in midfield and looked mint.
Jones looked absolutely amazing when he started for us. There was a reason he was so hyped. He looked majestic in CB, dominating in midfield and great at RB during his early time with us. Injuries really robbed us of what could have been one of the players of his generation.
Of course not, too many variables. If injuries kick in, the odds are massively against you. And Phil is made of glass. To reach your potential, you have to have some stability and consistency. But Phil never could stay fit for longer than a couple of months at the best of times. If you are that injury prone, you are half the player, which he is nowadays. He had massive potential, but could never kick on and improve.
He's said he doesn't fancy it, he knows he's the focus of ridicule. I feel for him (but I'd still shift him asap if possible).
Agreed but after 5 years so 2016 it ought to have been plain to everyone he was massively injury prone. He shouldnt have been given a new contract in 2016 never mind get another 5 year one last season.
And it is not only injuries. Before contract extension he had horrible run of games. It was obvious that he is just not good enough.
He would be if not for the injuries. You never know when he can play. He has often had good runs in the side like under Mourinho only to get injured and struggle once back to find top form again.
He's regularly not available to play at the times we need him. Even when he does have periods of fitness he's just too inconsistent.
Oh yeah, don't get me wrong, I agree. In general I'm not a fan of our approach as a club of clinging on to players and hoping that they fulfill their potential eventually, as for every one Darren Fletcher you get far too many Darron Gibsons to make this approach worth it. Jones should have been sold before, I just really liked him when he initially came in.
You still need a solid squad though. Fans here want to remove far too many players and put all faith in the youth who may not be ready.
He’s never fit , if he plays he’s guaranteed to get injured or make a mistake.
One of the attributes I would list at the very top for a perfect backup would be to be available when needed.
I mean who doesn’t love a good Phil Jones meme? Peak Banter FCI am saying that for years. Injuries are only excuse. He is bang average defender. No sense for positioning at all. People love when he makes last ditch tackle and think that he is good because of it but in reality that tackles show how his sense for positioning is bad.
His mistakes are those expected from a 17 year old defender. However he is not young who has all the time on the world to mature he is a 28 year old injury prone player.
I agree. However Jones plays like a 17 year old. His positioning, his head butting the pitch moments, his dips in terms of concentration. We get the worst of both worlds here ie a 28 year old body which is ravaged by injury + the football brain of a 17 year old
Yeah his brain is a bit strange. He has shown times with form, but can then play stupidly in other games.
At no point in Phil Jones's United career has he had a phenomenal season. Come on man
He was better than bang average when he joined, in fact he was brilliant and his positioning was top notch both in midfield and as a central defender.
