Since the arrival of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic at United, it’s safe to say that the Red Devils have lacked elite and, more importantly, defensive stability.
Over the years we’ve seen the likes of Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Jonny Evans, Marcos Rojo, Eric Bailey, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez all fail to become the new Ferdinand and Vidic.
Should we be surprised? Arguably not. Rio and Vidic are two of the best centre-backs in Premier League history. However, nearly 15 years have passed since those days. At some point, United need to find answers.
Of all the players on this list, Maguire is arguably the closest to stability. There was a time when Jones also looked like their next best hope.
What’s wrong with Phil Jones at Manchester United
You have to go back to the summer of 2011, June 13 to be exact, the day Jones joined Manchester United.
During Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign, he paid £17 million for a then 19-year-old player from Blackburn Rovers. They beat Liverpool and Arsenal to sign him.
Things are starting to look positive. The defender has won praise from many figures in the game, not least Ferguson, who described the centre-back as “could be a player for us”. [Man Utd’s] The best player ever. “
“The way he looks now, he’s probably going to be the best player we’ve ever had. No matter where we play, he’s probably one of the best players we’ve ever had. At 21 years old, he’s going to be a phenomenal player. He can play anywhere on the pitch. He has such an impact with his instincts and his reading of the game. He has drive.” Sir Jones – 2013.
That’s nice praise, but it’s more than that. Gary Neville says he is “a bit like Bryan Robson or Roy Keane”. As a result, everything fell apart, which is sad.
He’s too injury-prone for Jones. The centre-back missed 1,168 days of football during his time at Manchester United. He also missed 224 games. For someone so talented, for someone who was considered by Ferguson to be one of the best players in the club’s history, it was devastating.
However, you could also argue that Jones has been at United for too long. He made 229 appearances for United but made just six Premier League appearances in his final four seasons at Old Trafford. In the end, he was not welcomed.
Manchester United have uncovered another Phil Jones-like situation
It has been three years since Jones left Manchester United. The 34-year-old is now an assistant coach at Sheffield United. In another world, he still plays for the Red Devils, making over 500 appearances.
However, the harsh reality dictated that he had to shorten his career. Indeed, he could have left Manchester United earlier. The fact that he’s still on the books until his contract expires in 2023 is pretty damning for the decline this great club has fallen into.
It’s now 2026 and it’s a shame that Diogo Dalot is still playing for the club. The situation is very different. Dalot has never been injury-prone. In fact, he’s one of the most available players they’ve had lately.
However, like Jones, his popularity at Old Trafford has now exceeded expectations. On Sunday, he celebrated 250 appearances for the club in typical Dalot fashion; with an underwhelming performance.
Like Jones, playing in over 200 games is pretty impressive, let alone 250. In fact, he was too erratic and hasty. Come 2026, he’s still United’s right-back, which is a bad thing for United’s recruitment.
Ineos will surely regret having overlooked the opportunity to improve their full-backs this summer. He was particularly poor against Manchester City. The Portuguese did struggle to contain Antoine Semenho and twice put his team in trouble. He lost possession a total of 11 times and had just three defensive contributions.
Dalot vs Manchester City | |
|---|---|
Minutes played | 90 |
touch | 62 |
Accurate passing | 34/40 (85%) |
key pass | 1 |
Accurate cross | 0 |
Dribbling | 1 |
lens | 1 |
duel won | 4/9 |
Tackle | 1 |
ball recovery | 9 |
Looking ahead, he’s not much better. Against ten men, Dalot made no positive impact at all and only delivered one key pass. His two crosses were also inaccurate.
For the second consecutive derby, the full-backs performed sluggishly. He may have been lucky not to receive a harsher penalty for a tackle on Jeremy Doku earlier this year.
This time Doku was out due to injury, but that didn’t matter. All said and done as Patrik Dolgu was called upon to stop the cross that led to Erling Haaland’s goal. Both full-backs found themselves out of position when the ball came out to the left of City’s forward line.
Dalot may not have the potential of Jones, nor does he have a bad injury history. But the fact that he’s still far beyond his best at the club is certainly similar.
He has cost the club around £45m (excluding bonuses) during his time at the North West. He was worth £19 million in 2018 and has since earned £25 million. That’s an extraordinary number considering his level of performance.