Tag Archives: Phil Jones

West Brom haven’t been known for making waves in the transfer market that much but they’re looking to land a significant double-deal ahead of the new season.

The Daily Mirror indicates Tony Pulis has set his sights on Manchester United’s defensive duo Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, both of whom have two-years remaining on their contracts at Old Trafford.

Both England aces face uncertain futures in Jose Mourinho’s side following the capture of Victor Lindelof from Benfica, who’s set to partner last summer’s recruit Eric Bailly in the heart of the Red Devils defence- potentially leaving Smalling and Jones in real trouble in their battle to make England’s World Cup squad.

Jones’ versatility appeals to Pulis, who’s also looking to bolster his defensive options with former Manchester United man Jonny Evans attracting interest from elsewhere, Jonas Olsson having already left and Gareth McAuley halfway into a retirement home.

Whether they can persuade Manchester United to sell though is another matter as the departure of the pair would significantly decrease the depth at Mourinho’s disposal.

The England impact

Crucially, moving to West Brom could help both defenders in their quest to establish themselves as key figures within Gareth Southgate’s England squad ahead of the World Cup next summer, especially as Jake Livermore battled his way back into the set-up after joining the Baggies from Hull in January.

Smalling is probably better placed for a starting spot within the England squad next summer as it stands but the rise of young pairing John Stones and Michael Keane prevents problems, especially as the pair will be assured of regular football this season.

Jones is perhaps the man who desperately needs to move on though as he seems out of Mourinho’s plans and a move to West Brom, who’ll offer regular football and stable surroundings, could spark his career back into life.

Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw at Goodison Park on Sunday as Marouane Fellaini gave away a late penalty. Two players caught the eye for United on the day, but both for very different reasons.

Marcus Rojo supplied the first big talking point of the game after lunging into a 50/50 challenge with Idrissa Gueye, but was only shown a yellow card by referee Michael Oliver, much to the anger of the Everton players. The first half was dominated by controversial decisions as United players would argue Gareth Barry should have been sent off for two bookings.

After 42 minutes of sloppy play from both sides, the deadlock was finally broken. Anthony Martial supplied a perfect ball for Zlatan Ibrahimovic to chase and lob the ball over the stranded, Stekelenburg. The goal was given by goal line technology after the attempt hit the bar, post and then creeped over the line.

The first piece of action of the second half took place on the 53^rd minute when Kevin Mirallas skipped past Rojo with ease and forced a good save from David De Gea, who would have been trying to forget his mid-week slip up against West Ham.

Ander Herrera hit the post with a great effort after some good work from Mkhitaryan on only his second league start for the club.

On the 85^th minute, Marouane Fellaini was substituted on, and on the 87^th minute, the same man gave away a penalty. The Belgian once again proving why he isn’t up to standards for a side like Manchester United. Leighton Baines kept his nerve and placed the penalty in the bottom corner, which proved to be the final goal in the game.

Phil Jones, hopefully back for good

When Phil Jones joined the club, Sir Alex Ferguson labelled the young man as a future captain of club and country, but the Englishman has been plagued with injury and hasn’t been able to live up to his potential. Back from injury, the centre-back has been extremely impressive and there was no change today. Jones kept Romelu Lukaku quiet for the whole game and made sure he didn’t win anything in the air, which is a tough task against such a physical player. The ex-Blackburn Rovers player was a brick wall and made sure David De Gea was protected. Jones had the confidence to play it out from the back to Michael Carrick instead of hitting it up the field and giving it away.

When managing Chelsea, Mourinho mentored John Terry into the player that he is today and if he can stay fit, I don’t think there is any doubt that he can reach the former England captain’s level.

How long can Fellaini hold onto his Utd Career?

Manchester United fans will not be wanting to see any more of Marouane Fellaini for a good few weeks, that’s if he can survive the January transfer window. The Belgian has never been in the good books of the fans ever since he joined the club and he simply isn’t helping himself. He doesn’t have the quality of the players around him and it sticks out like a sore thumb.

Mourinho put his belief in the midfielder to keep the ball for the final few minutes and add an extra man to the defensive duties, but another stupid mistake led to another draw. Surely it’s time up for Fellaini?