Erik ten Hag has revealed that Phil Jones has not taken part in one training session since the Dutchman took over at Man Utd.
Jones is still a Man Utd player, and is among the highest earners in the Premier League, despite hardly kicking a ball in the past three years.
When he first signed for Man Utd under Alex Ferguson, it looked like Jones was going to be the future of both United and England, but a combination of bad form and shocking luck with injuries resulted in his career being all-but over by the time he turned 27.
In the past four years, Jones has made six Premier League appearances, and that doesn’t look like it’s going to change any time soon.
Erik ten Hag on Phil Jones
Speaking about Jones’ future, Ten Hag revealed that Jones has been injured since the very first day of the season.
He said: “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’ contract is up at the end of the season, and United have the option of an additional year, though that seems extremely unlikely under Ten Hag.
Still only 30 years of age, there is the chance for Jones to have a decent and respectable end to his career, but it will almost certainly mean having to leave Man Utd.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer inexplicably signed Jones to a new contract in 2019, instead of letting him leave the club for free, but Ten Hag will likely have the sense to let the Englishman try get his game somewhere else.
source: https://punditarena.com/
