Jones' progress hasn't quite been what Sir Alex Ferguson predicted but the defender is still thriving at Man United.
BURTON-UPON-TRENT, England -- There are two things that hang over Phil Jones, two shadows that the Manchester United defender seems unable to be able to escape. One is his injury record, the other that time when Sir Alex Ferguson suggested he could become Old Trafford's "best-ever player."
"Jones, arguably the way he is looking, could be our best-ever player," said Fergusonafter United claimed their 20th (and last) English title in April, 2013. "I think Jones may be one of the best players we have ever had, no matter where we play him. At 21 years of age, he is going to be a phenomenal player. I think he can play anywhere on the pitch.
"He has such a massive influence, with his instinct and reading of the game."
Four years on, it would be fair to suggest that the former Blackburn Rovers centre-half has yet to live up to Ferguson's hype, but Jones admits he never took his former manager's comments too seriously.
"At the time, you are young and you just read the comments but it goes straight over your head, you're not interested," Jones said. "Four, five years ago, whenever it happened, you think 'Oh, that's good' and you go out to Nando's with your mates.
"The manager can say nice things, but I don't like to sit there and think 'that's nice,' because football is a very, very strange game. You can be up there one minute and down there the next. You just have to -- it sounds stupid -- take each day as it comes and every day is a different day.
"Sir Alex never said it to me, but he gave me the hairdryer treatment a few times."
Ferguson's public show of faith was perhaps intended as a confidence boost for Jones, who had endured two injury-affected seasons at Old Trafford prior to those comments. But regardless of Ferguson's motives, the backing of his player was obvious and Jones, now 25, admits that Jose Mourinho's arrival at United last year has finally given him a manager who believes in him just like Ferguson.
"I don't want to disrespect the other managers I've played under because I have the utmost respect for all the managers I have worked for and their opinions," he said. "Whether you think they are right or wrong you still have the respect for them, but I just feel in general that Sam Allardyce, Sir Alex and Jose Mourinho are the managers that have made me feel so wanted at the club and need me as one of their main players.
"Any footballer would tell you that if that's the case, then they are going to get the best out of you. I have seen comments [from Mourinho about wanting Jones at centre-half] and it's nice to hear that from the manager, but I am under no illusions. Equally, when times are tough, I am not one for just throwing the towel in. It was difficult towards the end of the second season under [Louis] Van Gaal but sometimes your face fits, sometimes it doesn't.
"I always said to myself that if I can be strong and mentally strong, I would have a chance under the new manager and thankfully he has given me that. Last season I didn't start so well, but towards the back end of the season I played a lot of games, felt good, felt strong and I feel the same this season."
Mark Ogden discusses whether Manchester United are done with their summer spending after acquiring three new faces.
Were it not for an injury sustained while training with England in March -- Jones was injured following a challenge by United teammate Chris Smalling -- Jones may have retained his place for the run-in and Europa League final. He missed out on both, however, and the injury jinx, which has restricted him to just 170 senior appearances in six years, had struck again. So what about those injuries, Phil?
"I get that people are going to talk about it [injuries]," he said. "It looms over my head, the whole thing, but I just concentrate on doing what I do best, and that's playing football.
"When I'm playing football, I'm enjoying it and if you're happy outside of football, then you're happy on the pitch as well. I've been here for six years now -- it feels longer than that [laughs]. It's weird. I feel like I have done a lot at United. I have developed as a player and grown into myself and seen a lot of faces come and go.
"Some might say in preseason, 'he might go here, he might go there,' but then you look at all the faces that have gone and you think to yourself, 'I can't be doing too bad if I am still here at one of the best clubs in the world.' I have won the Premier League, the Europa League, even though I was on the bench in the final, I have been involved in big games in the Champions League, so it's been too bad.
"You look at [Nemanja] Vidic, Rio [Ferdinand], Patrice [Evra], [Ryan Giggs] Giggsy, [Paul Scholes] Scholesy. It's mad to think how many people have come and gone during my time at the club already and it makes me proud to feel that I've been there so long albeit having not played as many games as I'd like, and I'm still there."
But should he have done more? Should he now be established as United's number-one centre-half?
"I agree, totally, but it's not about what has happened in the past now," Jones said. "I am concentrating on what I have got to do for my club and England.
"I've become more experienced as a player as I've got older. You need to be sensible on the pitch and sometimes I don't need to go for balls I would have done five or six years ago. It's just experience and having a better understanding of the game and who is around you.
"As a defender, you want to stop goals going in and so far at United, we have been able to do that. Some people would say we've not played Man City or Chelsea or Arsenal but there are no easy teams in the Premier League whether you play home or away, so it's positive.
"We are not getting too carried away with things. We have a long way to go. I feel good, happy and strong. I want to keep playing and play as many games as I can this season."
Mark Ogden is a senior football writer for ESPN FC. Follow him @MarkOgden_
Comments
Use a Facebook account to add a comment, subject to Facebook's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your Facebook name, photo & other personal information you make public on Facebook will appear with your comment, and may be used on ESPN's media platforms. Learn more.
Source: espn.co.uk