92% pass success, one goal: How Manchester United’s midfield machine led by example

A player of many positions. A player of great potential. A player with many comical faces. And after tonight, Phil Jones can also claim to be the player who single-handedly confirmed Manchester United’s position at the top of Champions League Group A, producing a performance full of courage, determination and intense work rate, combined with intelligent positioning, dependable passing and a vital goal.

It was, on reflection, a performance that David Moyes will undoubtedly expect to see from every member of his squad from now until the end of the season. A championship-winning team should house no passengers, and Jones’ brilliant European performance, comprising of rectifying the mistakes of far more experienced colleagues, ought to set the standard.

Man of the Match: Phil Jones.

The 21-year-old has come under fire from me this season, due to his limited passing ability and technical skill throughout central zones. Of course, there can be no doubting Jones’ desire to surge from box-to-box, however if positioned alongside summer acquisition Marouane Fellaini, who often passes sideways and backwards – a defensive mentality often associated with a ball-winner, and similar passing range to Jones – or Ryan Giggs, who’s far more creative but lacks the stamina and physicality to protect the defence for the full 90 minutes, United can lack a sense of balance in midfield.

Phil Jones completed 92% of attempted passes.

Nevertheless, the former Blackburn Rovers defender certainly impressed against Shakhtar Donetsk, completing 54 passes (92%) – the greatest amount of any United player.

Again, Jones’ passing was within the shorter ranges, opting to play safe instead of launching defence-splitting through balls into the channels for onrushing attackers, however the utility player kept things ticking over, possession in check.

Phil Jones’ interceptions.

Roy Keane fiercely criticised United at half-time, announcing that Rio Ferdinand was performing as if making ‘his debut.’ Indeed, the 35-year-old centre-back made a couple of silly errors that put his teammates under unnecessary pressure, but due to Jones’ knack of reading the potential threat, retreating with pace and snuffing out the danger, the possibility of Shakhtar running unopposed towards David de Gea was halted with a timely interception.

Bossing midfield throughout an impressive display.

Jones was everywhere, completing two tackles, five headed duels, four interceptions and four clearances. The youngster even managed to beat his opposite man three times from four attempts. An all-action display that enabled him to achieve a Performance Score of 82 – more than double the amount of his nearest rival. A demonstration that encompassed everything Moyes would want from his players.

Four clearances versus Shakhtar.

It’s no secret that United need to strengthen their midfield, and should have done so this summer instead of putting all of their eggs in a Fellaini-sized basket. But, given the determination and box-to-box nature of Jones, working in tandem with the metronomic qualities of Michael Carrick (upon his return), should Moyes tweak the current formation in order to get the best out of his midfield core? Carrick as a deep-lying anchor, Jones acting as the energetic pivot in midfield, alongside an inventive schemer – 4-5-1 perhaps (but then he’d be utilising the talents of only one of the world-class strikers.)

Tactical concepts aside, Jones was the star of the show on an important Champions League night, dragging his team forward to secure passage as group leaders. A morale-boosting victory and an individual performance of the highest quality, inspiring the team when others faltered.