Why Newcastle should take a gamble on Phil Jones
According to Chronicle Live, Newcastle manager Steve Bruce has asked Manchester United about the availability of Phil Jones. A former Manchester United player, Bruce is trying to use his connection with the club to inquire about Jones’ physical and mental state ahead of a possible January move. Jones was linked to Newcastle in the summer but no move went through.
Profile
The 28-year-old English defender joined Blackburn Rovers’ youth side in 2002 and his footballing journey started from there. Over the next few seasons, he progressed through the youth ranks and was finally promoted to the senior team in 2010.
He played a total of 40 games for the senior team before Manchester United came calling in 2011. He was expected to grow into a top player given the potential he showed. However, it has been anything but.
The defender has suffered regular injuries and fitness issues. His erratic nature of defending hasn’t helped either. Despite all that, Jones has gone on to make over 200 appearances for the club, scoring 6 goals and assisting 10 more in the process (h/t Transfermarkt).
He is a full England international with 27 senior caps to his name but has been out of the national side for a while now. Jones has won the Premier League with United, as well as other trophies.
Newcastle can take a punt on Jones
Newcastle have done rather okay this season and that has a lot to do with their transfers. Callum Wilson, Ryan Fraser and Jamal Lewis have all been in good nick and the club have nicked 4 wins and 2 draws from their opening 10 games. However, they did not add any player in central defence.
For a club often using a back-five formation involving 3 central defenders, they look like they could use another player to add some depth there. While Jones may not be a world-class defender who can change tier fortunes, he is a very decent and handy player to have around.
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The Manchester United man is injury-prone but apart from that, he can chip in with the occasional solid showing at the back. Jones can play a sporadic role at the club and give Bruce the option to rest or rotate his defensive players. This might look like a bit of a gamble for Newcastle but they should go for it.
