Man Utd's OVERPAID FLOP will never play for the club again

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 17 Apr 2023 08:44 BST
• 3 min read

Manchester United have a central defensive injury crisis on their hands, with Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez dropping out with problems in the 2-2 Europa League draw with Sevilla last Thursday.

This led to Harry Maguire teaming up with Victor Lindelof in a 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday – a match that the former struggled to look comfortable in, despite having a relatively quiet afternoon.

Meanwhile, there was no cover for Erik ten Hag to call upon should anything have happened to these players, with left-back Brandon Williams and right-back Marc Jurado the two defensive options among his substitutes for that encounter.

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This has led to speculation among Man Utd fans that Phil Jones could be in line for a recall to the team, yet a report in The Athletic confirms that is impossible.

Jones has not been registered for the Premier League, so playing in that competition was never a possibility, but with Maguire suspended for the FA Cup encounter with Brighton on Sunday, the door appeared to be open for him to feature in the semi-final.

However, according to the report, “the reality is Jones has not been able to complete a Ten Hag session all season and is not considered an option”.

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Ten Hag on Phil Jones

Ten Hag previously confirmed in late January that Jones, who is out of contract at Manchester United at the end of the season, had not been able to complete a single session.

Asked about Jones' contract situation at that time, Ten Hag replied: "No, it's not been taken until now. The decision about that is for the summer, but for the whole season he's injured.

"I can't say [if Jones will play again this season]. What I can say is that he's not available for training since the first day of training this season so I think there's not an opportunity for you to recover quickly and be available quickly."

Jones, who earns £75,000 per week, has made only 13 Manchester United appearances in the last four seasons and appears to have played his last match for the club.