Resilient Phil Jones deserved a happier Man United return than this

After making an emotional return to the United first team — 708 days after his previous appearance — Jones gave his all for a team that struggled to find its rhythm

Manchester United's Phil Jones reacts during the Premier League match at Old Trafford. Picture: Martin Rickett/PA

On a day when Manchester United’s tepid performance in a damaging defeat against Wolves gave the Stretford End little to cheer about, you can only hope the internet trolls leave comeback defender Phil Jones off their list of targets; after all, they have many other choices to focus on.

United’s progress under Ralph Rangnick is stuttering after a disappointing display in a match in which they were often second best, leaving their challenge for the top four in the balance.

That wasn’t the headline the Stretford End were looking for as forgotten man Jones played his first game in two years because of a knee injury, aiming to create a story of his own.

The big centre-back, one of few players remaining from the Ferguson era, has come to personify United’s fall from glory hunters to also-rans and has, as a result, suffered badly at the hands of critics and trolls.

In fact, that’s something of an understatement given the stick he has been given by football’s brutal keyboard warriors; so the fact that it was his headed clearance which was collected by Joao Moutinho to score the winning goal for Wolves is something he really didn’t deserve after an otherwise solid performance.

Jones is the perfect example of a player who hit the heights as a youngster and was subsequently clawed from the summit by a mix of unfortunate injuries, vicious media reviews, and a relentless campaign by internet critics to mock him. The latter of those challenges makes it a very modern story, and one that deserves a happier ending.

Quite what the experience has done to the mental health of a player who is still only 29 is rarely considered by those who made him a permanent meme — a by-word for the kind of lumbering centre-half who generates laughter rather than respect.

Missed tackles, comical falls, and strange facial expressions made the thick-set defender a figure of fun, long before two years of knee injuries tested his resolve, patience, and resilience to the maximum.

But Monday, after making an emotional return to the first team — 708 days after his previous appearance, against Tranmere in an FA Cup tie in January 2020 — he gave his all for a team that struggled to find its rhythm.

It would be too easy to suggest his presence underlined that United have made little progress in recent years despite a string of managers since Ferguson’s retirement. But his very first touch, an excellent interception, was cheered to the rafters and although there was little else to cheer in a tepid United performance, it was Jones who provided a sub-plot of positivity. If only others in the team could show the same resolve.

Jones was primarily there because of illness and injury to other key centre-halves, including Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof, but he did a decent job, including a vital block on Jimenez just before half-time, even if the final result underlined that Rangnick still has a tougher job than perhaps even he expected.

It was all very different in 2011 when Jones joined United from Blackburn for €20m, and for most players that would mean legendary status and a lucrative testimonial. But somehow the former England defender has ended up a much-lampooned cartoon character rather than seeing his name in Manchester United’s hall of fame.

It wasn’t always that way.

Alex Ferguson, who had turned to Jones after a bid for Raphael Varane was rebuffed, was so impressed a decade ago that he suggested the new arrival could become United’s ‘best ever player’ and Bobby Charlton compared him to club legend Duncan Edwards.

On reflection, those eulogies were a mistake. Too much pressure on a young man’s shoulders, too many unrealistic expectations, and no knowledge of the misfortune that lay ahead.

To say the ride has been a rocky one is an understatement. Once Ferguson departed, Jones became something of a scapegoat for United’s inability to repeat past glories, often singled out for poor performances at the back, whether at centre-half or right-back. So, let’s hope that history doesn’t repeat itself.

Constant problems with his right knee have been Jones’ downfall, especially in recent times, and it would be no surprise if neutrals looking at United’s teamsheet against Wolves were left stunned that Jones was still at the club.

He may not be there much longer because Benfica want him on loan and United are undergoing yet another transformation as Rangnick rings the changes. Judging by this game those changes are desperately needed — but if United can bottle the character Jones has shown in adversity and transmit it to others, that would be a good first step.