Phil Jones

I know it's early days into the season but I'm very excited about how Fergie is building up a strong, young side who can be left with huge responsibility. The movement last night in the 2nd half was absolutely incredible. A real joy to watch
 
MikeUpNorth said:
Why? He looks pretty good in central defence.
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As good as Jones was, Smalling and Evans are more complete in terms of strength and technique, respectively.

Jones' passing ability and wider range of attributes, particularly his tracking of runs and more expansive passing range lends itself to thrive in a central defensively minded midfield role IMHO. Ando and him in midfield wod be perfect for us, I reckon....
 
rotherham_red said:
As good as Jones was, Smalling and Evans are more complete in terms of strength and technique, respectively.

Jones' passing ability and wider range of attributes, particularly his tracking of runs and more expansive passing range lends itself to thrive in a central defensively minded midfield role IMHO. Ando and him in midfield wod be perfect for us, I reckon....
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I don't disagree with this actually, I think he could very well step up into a defensive midfield role.
Rooney
Young------------------Nani
Anderson Cleverley
Jones​

Could work very well in Europe, Valencia for Nani, Hernandez for Rooney being a couple of great impact subs aswell.
 
Pexbo said:
I don't disagree with this actually, I think he could very well step up into a defensive midfield role.
Rooney
Young------------------Nani
Anderson Cleverley
Jones​

Could work very well in Europe, Valencia for Nani, Hernandez for Rooney being a couple of great impact subs aswell.
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Personally, I can see him playing there in the big games this very role this season. He could be the person who performs the Pepe role v Barca, his tracking of runs is prodigious, and definately what marks him out from other defensive players his age.
 
Another very good performance from him today, needs to keep his place alongside Rio after the international break.

Even tried to rip De Gea's head off his shoulders for saving a pen. What a maniac.
 
That one shaky moment he had today was the one time he was chasing Arshavin into the penalty box in the second half. Other than that he looked fine.
 
Good performance but he needs to time his bursts forward a bit better.
 
He should have headed that ball for the Van Persie goal out for a corner. I'm pretty sure SAF will hammer him for that, just to help him keep perspective (no pun intended).
 
RDCR07 said:
That one shaky moment he had today was the one time he was chasing Arshavin into the penalty box in the second half. Other than that he looked fine.
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That, and his header to an Arsenal player that led to the Van Persie goal.
 
I loved how he surged up the right flank when Smalling had the ball
Think it was for Nani's goal
 
I saw him calling for the ball, laughed and thought WTF are you doing up there?
 
What a great signing by SAF.

Was sat next to my mate in the K stand and both of us noticed at one point that he was further ahead than our strikers. We both looked at each other and said 'wtf'. It was so funny.

Rio and vidic will be fighting for their places soon :D
 
Immense player.

Rio and Vidic have a battle on their hand because he's going to surpass them in the pecking order soon.

That said...wish he had headed the ball out of bounds because that second goal could have been avoided.
 
cliche but he has an old head on young shoulders. A bargain at 16.5m.
 
Vidic is not going to have any problems breaking back into the side. Its Rio who kinda has to worry. Vidic is amongst top 5 defenders in the world. He will start without a shadow of a doubt once he is fit.
 
RDCR07 said:
Vidic is not going to have any problems breaking back into the side. Its Rio who kinda has to worry. Vidic is amongst top 5 defenders in the world. He will start without a shadow of a doubt once he is fit.
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I agree. Rio's looked very, very suspect this season. Against City he really looked like his legs had gone. I accept I may be wrong after all I remember the 4-3 a couple of years ago when Bellamy kept leaving him for dead and thinking "the injuries have caught up with him" only to be proved wrong. Still, at 32 and with his injury history you get the feeling that every time he comes back he'll be that bit relatively less of a player than he was before.

Jones on the other hand just appears to go from strength to strength. He's powerful, mobile, good on the ball. I saw someone somewhere call him a quicker Steve Bruce on tele the other night and I was thinking to myself: right on the money. He's got it all and at 19 you expect him to just improve especially playing in this side.

If Rio cannot prove he's 100 per cent fit I see no reason to drop Jones.
 
This is nonsense about Rio and Vidic struggling to get into team, Jones and Smalling still have things to learn and they will get that schooling playing alongside both the veterans, at this point for them it's as much about continued development as it is playing time
 
Rio wont be dropped as such for Jones, I just think Rio will play less and be used in more important games - a little like last season
 
Jonno said:
Rio wont be dropped as such for Jones, I just think Rio will play less and be used in more important games - a little like last season
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This. Vidic and Rio is still the best defensive partnership in the world. There's a reason Fergie kept Rio on the pitch in the CL match against Chelsea last season where he was struggling while trying to run off a knock.

I think people are getting carried away a little, and I fully understand why really. Jones and Smalling have been absolutely phenomenal and Evans seems to be back to being the player we all had huge hopes. But I highly doubt any of them will be chosen ahead of Vidic or Rio in the big games.
 
Devilton said:
Immense player.

Rio and Vidic have a battle on their hand because he's going to surpass them in the pecking order soon.

That said...wish he had headed the ball out of bounds because that second goal could have been avoided.
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I think that's where De Gea's lack of English comes into play. I'm not sure Jones knew where he was entirely (other then being in front of goal) and a clear shout would have helped him out there
 
This article reminded me of how worried I was a few years ago at the prospect of replacing Rio and eventually Vidic. This is, I think it's completely fair to say, the best center back pairing in the world for the last 5 years.

Frankly, we'll be lucky if Jones is as good a player as Rio or Vidic at some point in his career.

But I'm not only not worried about the future, I'm excited to see how Phil Jones might find ways to do some things even better than those two. I thought all this talk of 'future captain' sounded a little quick, but after seeing him, I think we all understand.

Manchester United England Rio Ferdinand Phil Jones David McDonnell - David McDonnell - MirrorFootball.co.uk

With the emergence of Phil Jones, will Rio Ferdinand have to get used to being a squad player for club and country?

By David McDonnell

Published 11:04 30/08/11


Rio Ferdinand's England place might not be the only cause for concern for the Manchester United defender.

He's also facing the prospect of no longer being an automatic pick for his club.

The remarkable manner in which Phil Jones has slotted into United's defence, with an assurance and conviction that has brought him a first full England call-up, has given Sir Alex Ferguson a genuine selection dilemma when Ferdinand is fully fit.

For the last five seasons, Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic have formed a formidable central defensive partnership - undoubtedly United's most effective and reliable since Steve Bruce and Gary Pallister in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Jones, like Chris Smalling, was bought for the future - Ferguson was mindful of Ferdinand's age and injury problems in recent seasons, and the need for a ready-made replacement was a necessity to ensure a smooth transition of personnel in such a crucial position.

But 19-year-old Jones, despite his relative inexperience, has been a revelation alongside Jonny Evans in the centre of defence since injuries to Ferdinand and Vidic forced Ferguson to pair up the two youngsters.

While United skipper Vidic can expect to reclaim his place straight away when he has recovered from the calf injury he sustained on the opening weekend of the season at West Brom, the same cannot be said of his regular partner.

Like Ferdinand, Jones is a cultured centre-half, comfortable in possession and with the instinct to start attacks from the back rather than merely fulfilling the defender's primary remit of clearing danger, something at which he also excels.

A shuddering tackle on Tottenham's Gareth Bale from Jones on his Old Trafford debut for United earned him instant acclaim from the Stretford End and marked him out as a player who needed no time to settle in to his new surroundings.

Jones continued in the same manner against Arsenal, his composure at the back somewhat overlooked amid the praise lavished on United's attacking players following the avalanche of goals under which they buried Arsene Wenger's hapless side in their 8-2 win.

As well as an impressive reading of the game and a physique suited to the rigorous demands of the Premier League, Jones also has pace - a rare commodity in central defenders these days.

In short, his performances so far this season have shown just why Ferguson was so determined to win the race to sign Jones, with Liverpool and Arsenal among the clubs vying for the former Blackburn defender's signature.

And at £16.5million, with potentially a decade in United's first-team ahead of him, the purchase of Jones is already looking like another astute piece of business and customarily canny forward-planning from Fergie.

Fabio Capello has been so impressed with Jones he intends to play him alongside skipper John Terry in England's upcoming Euro 2012 qualifiers against Bulgaria and Wales - ahead of the likes of Joleon Lescott and Phil Jagielka, who have more international experience.

Although Ferdinand was on the bench for United's win over Arsenal, having made an earlier-than-expected recovery from a hamstring injury, Capello did not name him in his latest squad - a clear warning his international place is no longer guaranteed.

And the Italian's gushing praise for Jones did little to dispel the perception that Ferdinand is likely to have to get used to being a squad player for his country, rather than the automatic-pick status he has enjoyed for a decade.

"He [Jones] is so young and so good," said Capello, speaking before United's rout of Arsenal.

"This is a really good talent for England. Jones is a talent like Jack Wilshere. He is a player who always seems to play really well, at every level you play him.

"Look at the game he played against Tottenham. Every time he received the ball he looked confident, the way he passed the ball, the way he demanded the ball.

"It is not easy to find a player this young who plays with such confidence. He is the future. His talent is incredible. When you find this kind of talent you need to use it."

Ferdinand has two years left on his United contract and it remains to be seen whether the defender, who turns 33 in November, will earn a new deal given his injury history and with the likes of Jones, Evans and Chris Smalling all eager to replace him.

Against that backdrop, it amounts to a huge test for Ferdinand to prove he is still the main man for club and country when fully fit, despite the emergence of Jones and the challenge the prodigiously-talented teenage defender has laid down.
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I can see jones playing the "pepe vs Barca" role with smalling and Evans behind him, and the twins playing as wing backs. In such a setup, jones can happily drop back into defence when the twins push forward, with smalling covering to the right and Evans to the left where necessary.

I would be quite excited to see such a system.
 
"This is a really good talent for England. Jones is a talent like Jack Wilshere. He is a player who always seems to play really well, at every level you play him."

I wonder what Alastair thinks of this, you have to wonder where the idea Jones was too slow for a centre back came from.
 
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