“I just think at centre back, when he is playing against clever forwards, he tends to get dragged out of position quite a easily,”

“At right back you still need to be clever positionally but I think he can use his pace and power and he hasn't got a bad delivery either.

“I just think at centre half he is not quite clever enough to do it.”

During his playing days we barely heard a peep from Paul Scholes, but now he’s retired it’s hard to find a game on TV without the former Manchester United man among the pundits, while his newspaper columns are also frequent. Speaking around England’s friendly draw with the Republic of Ireland, the former Three Lion was once again vocal, and was a little critical of Phil Jones as he opted to question his intelligence on the pitch.

Let’s not get confused, he didn’t actually call the Man United player thick, but he did suggest that he may not have the brains to be a world class centre back, which is, in our opinion, a little unfair. And here are FIVE reasons why…

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Still young

How can Jones be expected to be a world-class centre-back at the age of 23? The majority of defenders come into their prime during their latter 20s, at which time they’ve picked up experience and nous from years dealing with differing challenges and circumstances. The centre-back role is less reliant on physical attributes than other positions, with much of the game down to concentration, positioning and know-how, which very few are blessed with so early in their career.

Rarely gets to play in a settled side

How often has Jones been the part of a settled back four or five? Not very often! Plucked from Blackburn by Manchester United as a teenager, the 23-year-old has flitted in and out of the Red Devils’ XI under different managers operating with differing systems.

Last term was a prime example of the lack of stability, with Jones, at some stage, having played alongside Jonny Evans, Chris Smalling, Marcos Rojo, Paddy McNair and Tyler Blackett. Not much consistancy there.

Needs a system he can work in

The best centre-backs need a set-up tailored to their strengths. Look at John Terry? He was exposed in Ander Villas-Boas’ high-line system a few years ago leading to suggestions that he may well be at the end of his career, but in 2014/15 JT played every minute of the Premier League season for the champions.

Jones’ strengths lay in his physicality and bravery, so he needs a defender alongside him who’s able to mop up and marshal a backline effectively.

Injuries haven’t helped

Jones’ career has been somewhat stunted by injury. The defender missed the majority of the opening months of the campaign just gone with shin splints, adding to fitness problems suffered through the previous tenures of David Moyes and Sir Alex Ferguson.

It’s unfair to expect the youngster to have truly flourished when so much of his time has been spent nursing injuries, and often players grow out of these over time.

When does he get to play alongside a top quality centre-back?

The best often play alongside the best and learn from one another’s games. More so than any other area of the pitch, centre-backs are reliant upon the efforts of another player, so the fact Jones is rarely able top play alongside a world-class defender is, perhaps, a negative for him.