'You want to say something back' - Ex-Man Utd defender Phil Jones opens up on fearing abuse in the street & mental strain of injury-plagued career as he begins coaching journey

Jones retired from football in August having been without a club after leaving United in June 2023. The defender had been tipped to be a future Manchester United great by his then-manager Sir Alex Ferguson but failed to live up to the promise as injuries plagued his career. Since retiring, he has opened up about how difficult it was to suffer abuse for poor performances and the mental turmoil of injury setback after injury setback.

Writing for BBC Sport, Jones said: "I'd had lots of public situations like that to deal with down the years without responding in that positive way, and had often ended up just trying to avoid them.

"It got so bad for a while that I would be walking down the street, worried about what people would say to me in case I got abuse, and thinking about what I'd say next. I just wanted to keep my head down when I was in a crowd, and it was the same on social media, which is why I came off it for a while.

"If you knew me, you knew all I wanted was to be able to play football - but it is as if people thought I just woke up each morning and decided I was injured.

"You want to say something back, especially when they said it to my face, but it has never been in my character to do that. I've always been humble and down to earth, and I've never taken myself too seriously."

Jones spent 12 years at United and made 169 Premier League appearances for the club. He made just six appearances in the division after the start of the 2019-20 season, none of which came in his final season (2022-23) at Old Trafford. Jones' injury troubles hampered his consistency and form and left him struggling mentally as well as physically, but he is now focused on coaching.

Jones wishes to put his troubled playing career behind him and ensure he becomes the best coach he can. The former defender has almost completed his UEFA Pro Licence and believes his time learning under some of the best managers in the game will help him.

He added: "I learned so much from all the different managers I played for and the team-mates I played with, in lots of different competitions at club and international level. I have built up and stored all of that information, and feel I could use it to really help players and get them to the next level."