“Enjoyed every moment”: United PL winner delivers emotional farewell to club after only four months

Manchester United Premier League winner Phil Jones has had another change in his role. United playing career Jones joined Manchester United in 2011 and won a Premier League title in 2013. The England international spent 12 years at the club, but his time was plagued by injuries. In spite of all his years at Old Trafford, he actually only managed to play 229 appearances. This included making just six Premier League appearances in his final four seasons. Post-playing career Jones started a coaching role with Manchester United’s under-14s and under-18s during the 2023–2024 season. In February this year, he rejoined his first club, Blackburn Rovers, as an assistant manager under Michael O’Neill. Jones was part of the staff that helped Rovers avoid relegation to League One and maintain their Championship status for another year. The Star reports that “Phil Jones has said an emotional goodbye to Blackburn Rovers amid talk of a move to join the coaching staff at Sheffield United.” Chris Wilder’s assistant manager, Alan Knill, is leaving the club and there has been speculation that Jones is being lined up to replace him. Jones is also not staying at Blackburn after Michael O’Neill opted not to remain as Rovers boss and signed a new deal with the Northern Ireland national football team. As a result, Jones posted an emotional goodbye to fans on Instagram. His post read, “as my time at Blackburn Rovers comes to an end, I’d just like to say thank you. Returning to Blackburn was something I’d always hoped I’d get the chance to do, so I’m grateful it became a reality.” He added, “I’ve loved being back at the club and have enjoyed every moment. A huge thank you to Michael O’Neill for the opportunity to be part of his coaching staff and bringing me back to where it all started.” Jones signed off by stating, “thank you also to all the players, staff and supporters for making my time here so enjoyable. Wishing everyone at the club nothing but success in the future.” The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Alex Browne Alex is a huge Manchester United fan, inspired by greats of his homeland such as George Best, Harry Gregg and Norman Whiteside. Alex has a Master’s degree from Queen’s University Belfast and La Universitat Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona, Spain. Having lived in the country since 2011, Alex is The Peoples Person’s Spanish football expert and is fluent in both Spanish and Catalan. He dreams of witnessing a United captain triumphantly hoisting the Premier League and Champions League trophy in the air once more.