Phil Jones | released summer 2023

[VivaRonaldo85]

Wouldn’t surprise me if he ends up retiring from playing and joins our coaching staff. Would be a very Ole thing to do.

 

[Moriarty]

Wouldn’t surprise me if he ends up retiring from playing and joins our coaching staff. Would be a very Ole thing to do.

Medical staff surely. With the amount of time he's spent in the treatment room, he's probably got more medical knowledge than the average GP.

 

[Plant0x84]

If I was Ole I would tell him not to bother coming to work. Manchester United have standards and Jones shit on those standards by still being at the club despite not being a player anymore. Its not his fault that the club was silly enough to give him a long term contract but that doesn't remove such fact.

What an absolute car crash of a post this is…..

Let me get this straight. Jones has been stealing a living, we’re obligated to pay him but he shouldn’t come to work? You see the contradiction there?

 

[devilish]

What an absolute car crash of a post this is…..

Let me get this straight. Jones has been stealing a living, we’re obligated to pay him but he shouldn’t come to work? You see the contradiction there?

We are obligated to pay him but that doesn't mean he should be anywhere near to our young players. It's not good for the kids to be influenced by someone who quite frankly hasn't been good enough for quite a long time and yet he keeps getting a salary for doing feck all. Which part of that do you struggle in understanding?

 

[Plant0x84]

We are obligated to pay him but that doesn't mean he should be anywhere near to our young players. It's not good for the kids to be influenced by someone who quite frankly hasn't been good enough for quite a long time and yet he keeps getting a salary for doing feck all. Which part of that do you struggle in understanding?

Frankly all your posts in this thread are gibberish, and make my brain hurt. I mean, you do know he has been injured and rehabilitated, right? And you know he was injured doing his job, for this very club? And you are aware that by following his rehab plan, turning up for training he is actively doing his job for which we remunerate him? I’m confident it’s illegal to sack somebody who is injured at work which is pretty much what you are calling for. I’m also pretty sure he does his rehabilitation work away from the main training session anyway, but do you really think he’s sat there in the changing room like some sort of Manc father jack shouting “ be like uncle Phil boys! Get injured and be paid for doing nowt!“

 

[Flytan]

Listen I hate having his wage on the books as much as anyone but I doubt a player who played as hard as him isn't at the very least trying to get on the pitch. I don't think he will ever be a regular here and if he wasn't making so much money he'd be elsewhere

 

[devilish]

Frankly all your posts in this thread are gibberish, and make my brain hurt. I mean, you do know he has been injured and rehabilitated, right? And you know he was injured doing his job, for this very club? And you are aware that by following his rehab plan, turning up for training he is actively doing his job for which we remunerate him? I’m confident it’s illegal to sack somebody who is injured at work which is pretty much what you are calling for. I’m also pretty sure he does his rehabilitation work away from the main training session anyway, but do you really think he’s sat there in the changing room like some sort of Manc father jack shouting “ be like uncle Phil boys! Get injured and be paid for doing nowt!“

Then I suggest that you use the ignore button. I find it quite useful with the likes of yourself.

 

[devilish]

Listen I hate having his wage on the books as much as anyone but I doubt a player who played as hard as him isn't at the very least trying to get on the pitch. I don't think he will ever be a regular here and if he wasn't making so much money he'd be elsewhere

I think that if United had to release him he'd struggle to find a job in the EPL.

 

[Plant0x84]

Then I suggest that you use the ignore button. I find it quite useful with the likes of yourself.

“ Im losing this argument so I’m going to ignore you now!” Good chat.

 

[devilish]

“ Im losing this argument so I’m going to ignore you now!” Good chat.

Its just a friendly advice. The guy has been in and out of rehab for longer anyone can remember. He's finished.

Anyway tara

 

[bond19821982]

Its just a friendly advice. The guy has been in rehab for long anyone can remember. He's finished

Anyway tara

I dont want to take sides and all, but your post was kind of bit of meh. His body, his salary and his interaction with kids or youngsters are all entirely different things. He has been injured most of the time so he shouldnt come near our teams- wow , that's some take !

 

[devilish]

I dont want to take sides and all, but your post was kind of bit of meh. His body, his salary and his interaction with kids or youngsters are all entirely different things. He has been injured most of the time so he shouldnt come near our teams- wow , that's some take !

He epitomises everything that is wrong with United in the past seven years ie he's a player who keeps getting contracts extensions despite repeatedly not being anywhere near to good enough. I understand that it's not his fault. However do you really want a football meme anywhere near to our kids? How are we going to sell the idea of United having high standards with him around?

Ideally we should release him. However that is not in Ole's hands. Having him out of the training group is though

 

[stevoc]

It seems that there were/are conflicting reports in the media about whether or not he actually had surgery:

Phil Jones given hope of future at Man Utd after 'disheartening' year through injury after knee surgery (thesun.co.uk)
Phil Jones injury: Defender unergoes surgery on 'persistent issue' (oldtraffordfaithful.com)
Man United cancel Phil Jones' knee surgery so he can be sold - Man United News And Transfer News | The Peoples Person
Man Utd opt against Phil Jones surgery as they look to find buyer for defender - Mirror Online

The club's official website does say that he had surgery, though, in these articles:

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on Phil Jones's injury recovery | Manchester United (manutd.com)
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gives injury update on Eric Bailly and Phil Jones | Manchester United (manutd.com)

Fair enough mate he must have had surgery at some point last year though I don't think it was June.

But Jones absence has been strange as Solskjaer and the club have been very, very vague about what type of injury ha has had and when he'll be fit again. It always seems to be ''he's working hard and hopefully he'll be back soon'' for over a year now. Ole says in one of those articles you linked dated February 2021 that he hoped to have him back soon. But here we are 6 months later and apparently he's only due to start back training this week.

 

[stevoc]

In hindsight the club giving him a new 5 year deal back in 2019 was a mistake (well let's be honest not even with hindsight). But I think given his injury record between 2011 and 2019 the club would have been well within their rights to only offer him a pay as you play deal. They could and should have had some sort of safeguard in place when offering such an injury prone player a long term deal. I believe he's only made 10-15 appearances since signing that contract back at the beginning of 2019. Which is sad for Phil and the club.

 

[arthurka]

Jones will be here until the end of days..

 

[littleman]

I remember Woodgate was horribly injured most of the times but was class when he played.

Jones isn’t at that level so we’re much more unfortunate

 

[Varun1]

Jones suffered a serious knee injury in June last year and had an operation to try to fix it. He’s still recovering from that. Considering Ole himself spent the better part of three years suffering with a serious knee injury before managing to make it back to full fitness to play an important part in winning the league in 2006/07, it’s no surprise that he’s sympathetic towards Jones’s plight, having been there himself. Jones has played 224 times for the club, despite his injuries. Should Ferguson have tossed Ole aside when he had his knee troubles? Should he have released Darren Fletcher when he was battling his illness? What about ditching Gary Neville after his ankle injury at the end of 2006/07, that kept him out of league action for around 18 months? That’s not United.

Very good post. I feel sorry for the lad and am glad we kept him at the club.
I hope he gets a role at the club as I think his playing career is over.

 

[Varun1]

He epitomises everything that is wrong with United in the past seven years ie he's a player who keeps getting contracts extensions despite repeatedly not being anywhere near to good enough. I understand that it's not his fault. However do you really want a football meme anywhere near to our kids? How are we going to sell the idea of United having high standards with him around?

Ideally we should release him. However that is not in Ole's hands. Having him out of the training group is though

Looks like you epitomise all that's wrong with some fans.
What United did with Jones is 100% the right thing. It's the United way, and something am really pleased with about the club.
Can you for a second imagine what he must be going through? For all we know, he may not be getting paid a lot. Maybe it's a pay as you play contract. Maybe it was a way to give him access to our facilities.

 

[Matst1]

Don't clubs have insurance, so when players face a long lay-off, the insurance kicks in and the club is covered?

 

[devilish]

Looks like you epitomise all that's wrong with some fans.
What United did with Jones is 100% the right thing. It's the United way, and something am really pleased with about the club.
Can you for a second imagine what he must be going through? For all we know, he may not be getting paid a lot. Maybe it's a pay as you play contract. Maybe it was a way to give him access to our facilities.

We are neither a hospital nor a retiring home for former players. Jones hasn't delivered for years. He should have been let go years ago. That's what successful clubs would do

Players are paid well enough especially at this level. It's not as if Jones would end up in the streets if United showed him the door . He would have probably left United as a multi millionare

 

[devilish]

Don't clubs have insurance, so when players face a long lay-off, the insurance kicks in and the club is covered?

The insurance might cover him while on injury not while he's fit. The guy is clearly not good enough to play for us anymore

 

[DRJosh]

Looks like you epitomise all that's wrong with some fans.
What United did with Jones is 100% the right thing. It's the United way, and something am really pleased with about the club.
Can you for a second imagine what he must be going through? For all we know, he may not be getting paid a lot. Maybe it's a pay as you play contract. Maybe it was a way to give him access to our facilities.

Great post. I think more people need to empathise. There would be a considerable toll on him mentally.

 

[Gurtej]

Jones suffered a serious knee injury in June last year and had an operation to try to fix it. He’s still recovering from that. Considering Ole himself spent the better part of three years suffering with a serious knee injury before managing to make it back to full fitness to play an important part in winning the league in 2006/07, it’s no surprise that he’s sympathetic towards Jones’s plight, having been there himself. Jones has played 224 times for the club, despite his injuries. Should Ferguson have tossed Ole aside when he had his knee troubles? Should he have released Darren Fletcher when he was battling his illness? What about ditching Gary Neville after his ankle injury at the end of 2006/07, that kept him out of league action for around 18 months? That’s not United.

True but most of them already were highly regarded at man UTD… Jones even when fit wasn’t of any significance for us….I am sorry but you can’t compare his situation to those 3…..

Bottom line is that club made a mistake giving him a long term deal, it’s best for both parties to part ways in a good way….

Good luck to the lad, but if you think he will come back and has a role to play at UTD, you are badly mistaken…..Probably a Low to mid level team would be good for him to kick things off again….

 

[hobbers]

What United did with Jones is 100% the right thing. It's the United way, and something am really pleased with about the club.

There is no "United Way", but if there was, handing out £5m a year contracts to permanently crocked players as some form of charity for millionaire footballers would not be it.

The last contract we gave to Jones was a total embarrassment for the club, however you care to look at it.

 

[youmeletsfly]

We are obligated to pay him but that doesn't mean he should be anywhere near to our young players. It's not good for the kids to be influenced by someone who quite frankly hasn't been good enough for quite a long time and yet he keeps getting a salary for doing feck all. Which part of that do you struggle in understanding?

First of all, you don't know the guy. How the feck do you know what kind of influence he has on younger players? What's the connection between his influence on youngsters and his injury record?

Not being good enough or fit enough doesn't mean he doesn't have the right mentality/attitude or that he ain't a good lad. There are a lot of parts you have struggles understanding lad, not the guy you're quoting.

 

[Judas]

The scary thing is there were actually in 2019 people on here defending the new contract, saying it made sense and was a good idea. Obviously the majority called it for what it was, absolute madness. But it'll be funny to see if many of those defenders are in here saying how ridiculous it was to give him a new deal now. It was obvious back then it was going to be impossible to shift him, its pretty mad that was 2 years ago now.

 

[Godfather]

The scary thing is there were actually in 2019 people on here defending the new contract, saying it made sense and was a good idea. Obviously the majority called it for what it was, absolute madness. But it'll be funny to see if many of those defenders are in here saying how ridiculous it was to give him a new deal now. It was obvious back then it was going to be impossible to shift him, its pretty mad that was 2 years ago now.

Ole's made some very dubious decisions but this one takes the cake.

 

[Judas]

Doubt it was his to be honest. Or he’d have had a major say in it.

 

[devilish]

The scary thing is there were actually in 2019 people on here defending the new contract, saying it made sense and was a good idea. Obviously the majority called it for what it was, absolute madness. But it'll be funny to see if many of those defenders are in here saying how ridiculous it was to give him a new deal now. It was obvious back then it was going to be impossible to shift him, its pretty mad that was 2 years ago now.

There are people defending his contract till this very day

 

[izak]

With this guy you know he'll be injured the minute he's back with contact trainings, He's got a body like an egg shell slight contact and it's back to the treatment room again and the cycle continues.
Anyone has a record of the different injuries he's had since his time here? I seem to remember the blood clot one when Van Gal was boss.

 

[Red00012]

If I was Ole I would tell him not to bother coming to work. Manchester United have standards and Jones shit on those standards by still being at the club despite not being a player anymore. Its not his fault that the club was silly enough to give him a long term contract but that doesn't remove such fact.

What a truly awful post

 

[stevoc]

Don't clubs have insurance, so when players face a long lay-off, the insurance kicks in and the club is covered?

With some players I imagine after a decade of constant injuries the premium on any insurance would be astronomical.

 

[devips]

What a truly awful post

Truly awful and disgusting post. I am glad my United don't think the way of such posters.

 

[The Cluck]

Fair enough mate he must have had surgery at some point last year though I don't think it was June.

But Jones absence has been strange as Solskjaer and the club have been very, very vague about what type of injury ha has had and when he'll be fit again. It always seems to be ''he's working hard and hopefully he'll be back soon'' for over a year now. Ole says in one of those articles you linked dated February 2021 that he hoped to have him back soon. But here we are 6 months later and apparently he's only due to start back training this week.

I guess it must just be a complicated injury. Knees can be. Something like a broken bone is usually much easier to estimate a recovery timeline for. That ankle injury Neville had in 2007 became a running joke because he was always '2-3 weeks from coming back' yet it went on for around 18 months. Hopefully whatever the issue was is now fully resolved and he can get a half-decent remainder of preseason under his belt now.

 

[pawanraj]

Anyone has a record of the different injuries he's had since his time here? I seem to remember the blood clot one when Van Gal was boss.

14-15: Ankle - 2 games missed. Total: 2
15-16: Ankle injuries - 23 games missed, clot (Venous Occlusion) - 10 games missed: Total 33
16-17: Knee - 13 games missed, Toe injury - 10 games missed: Total 23
17-18: Hamstring injuries - 13 games missed: Total 13
18-19: Hamstring - 2 games missed, Illness - 7 games missed, random knock - 1 game missed: Total 10
19-20: random knock - 3, Knee Injury- 14 games missed: Total 17
20-21: Knee injury continues

Funny thing is - Even in 18-19, Jose barely played him (6 times). Ole was the one who played him 18 times after he arrived. We gave him a new contract in Feb 2019 (during Ole's time and when the team was on a run of wins). Which would show that Ole rated him. But in 19-20, Ole barely played him even in the first half the season when he was supposedly fit.

 

[stevoc]

Ole's made some very dubious decisions but this one takes the cake.

It wouldn't have been Ole's decision he was only a caretaker manager at the time.

 

[LawCharltonBest]

Medical staff surely. With the amount of time he's spent in the treatment room, he's probably got more medical knowledge than the average GP.

Calling Dr Jones

 

[stevoc]

I guess it must just be a complicated injury. Knees can be. Something like a broken bone is usually much easier to estimate a recovery timeline for. That ankle injury Neville had in 2007 became a running joke because he was always '2-3 weeks from coming back' yet it went on for around 18 months. Hopefully whatever the issue was is now fully resolved and he can get a half-decent remainder of preseason under his belt now.

Yeah it's obvious at this stage his future lies away from United but I would like to see him be able to resurrect his career somewhere at some level.

 

[VP89]

It wouldn't have been Ole's decision he was only a caretaker manager at the time.

Quite sure it was credibly reported that he was heavily consulted upon when key decisions took place as caretaker.

 

[The Cluck]

There is no "United Way", but if there was, handing out £5m a year contracts to permanently crocked players as some form of charity for millionaire footballers would not be it.

The last contract we gave to Jones was a total embarrassment for the club, however you care to look at it.

His contract was signed in February 2019. The injury that has kept him out for over a year occurred in 2020. Nobody could have predicted it would happen. It's not like the club offered it to him while he was lying in the ICU.