‘No one cares’ – Phil Jones’ teammates brutally ignored his last message in players’ group chat after retirement
Retiring from football is hard enough, but leaving a WhatsApp group, that’s a whole other level.
Phil Jones, who decided to call time on his playing career in August 2024, had a hard time saying goodbye to the game, but also his teammates.
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Having spent 12 years at Manchester United after a heralded move from Blackburn in 2011, Jones left the team in 2023, but only officially stepped away from playing a year later.
Calling it quits at the age of 32 will have made things difficult as injuries dogged his later career, but it was leaving the team WhatsApp group where the true heartbreak began.
“Believe it or not, it was quite emotional,” he said, as per The Sun. “I’d been on the WhatsApp for years and banter and you're sending people pictures and all sorts.
“I remember sitting in the bedroom going like, ‘Lads, it's been a pleasure and blah blah blah. Some I've played with a lot, some I've only just met, but it's been an absolute pleasure. I wish you all the best and I'll be your biggest supporters.’ It was a tough moment actually.”
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However, the reality then set in.
“Do you know what I gave it a minute and there was no response,” he said. “I was like ‘gone, gone, gone, I'm gone!’ No-one cares. But that's it. It's football.
"Things move so quickly and people come in. I played with people for six years. I will never see them again. I'll never speak to them again.”
Jones has since turned to punditry and is training for his UEFA coaching licence, but admitted that the transition wasn’t easy.
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“I found myself getting really bitter towards the game and that's not who I was,” he said.
“But I needed that time to reflect and come to terms with what happened and how it happened.
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"I look back now and I'm in a great place.”
The Preston-born defender made headlines with a £16.5million switch to Old Trafford in 2011, a hefty fee at the time for a young centre back.
His first season saw Premier League heartbreak as Manchester City won their first title on the final day, beating their neighbours thanks to the iconic Sergio Aguero goal against QPR.
However, United and Jones struck back the following season under Alex Ferguson, winning the title before the legendary Scot retired.
Jones would add an FA Cup, two Community Shields and a Europa League crown in the following seasons, but from the 2019/20 season onwards he failed to make more than ten appearances in a season.
Now, he is doing his coaching badges and is currently working on his FA Pro Licence.
Phil Jones' Man United career
Games - 229
Goals - 6
Premier League - 1
FA Cup - 1
Europa League - 1
Community Shield - 2
On his retirement, he said: "It was nice for the first few weeks, but then after that I was getting itchy feet and ready to embark on something, which is why I went down the director's route just to give me a different sort of focus to football.
"But my bread and butter is on the grass and it's what I really enjoy doing. I know exactly what I want to do, where I want to be.
“I’m ambitious as I was as a player. I wanted to play at the highest level, compete against the best players in the world.
“I love being out on the grass, working with kids, watching players develop. Whether that's at United, or that's elsewhere, I love watching new players come through.
"I've been lucky enough to help out with U18s at United, which has given me a different perspective on the game now.
“I don't watch a game any more, you're analysing it a little bit differently. I love the game. I love everything about it. I love being involved in it.
"It's given me a purpose and I'm really ambitious and it's something that I really want to go into.”
Many of his contemporaries have struggled in the dugout, like Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard.
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However, that wasn't going to put him off.
He added: “I just feel that I've got too much to offer with the managers I played under and the players I played with just to go, you know what, I'll leave it there.
“I want to be involved. I love being involved. The media work I've enjoyed. I've enjoyed it more than I actually thought I would but my bread and butter is certainly on the grass and coaching and going into that.
“Listen, I'm not naive enough to think that I'm going to become a head coach or a manager in the next two or three years.
"I understand that now I'm on the other side of the ladder where I've got to work myself up and build myself up. But I'm absolutely ready to do that and my family knows that.
“When I visualise and try to manifest where I want to be in five years time, absolutely, I want to be the guy taking the team.
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"I want to be the guy making the decisions and having support and backing from the club and the owners and choosing that right moment to step in at that time.
“I want to win games of football and I win at all costs. Whether that means I have to change personnel, whether that means I have to go down a different route to get results. It's a results business game. Of course we all want to play expansive, attractive football but it doesn't always work like that.”