An update has emerged on Manchester United defender Phil Jones, regarding Newcastle's interest in his services.

What's the talk?

According to The Sun, the Magpies are one of the teams eyeing him up as a possible target for the January transfer window.

The report names Watford as one of the other clubs interested in the English centre-back, whilst Championship side Derby - managed by Wayne Rooney - are also in the running.

Blunder

Eddie Howe, who is reportedly close to taking over at St. James' Park, could make an early blunder by signing Jones from United. The ex-Bournemouth coach must avoid making a major mistake in his first window by opting against a deal for the Englishman.

[snack-amp-story url= "https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/check-out-the-latest-newcastle-howe-ter-stegen" title= "Read the latest Newcastle news!"]

Put simply, there is no need for the club to take such a risk with Jones when they can look elsewhere. If Newcastle are looking to sign players to help them avoid relegation then availability and reliability are two factors that must be closely considered and Jones' track record suggests that he is a dud who will not be able to provide what they need.

United legend Rio Ferdinand once blasted him as a 'waste of time' for remaining at Old Trafford despite his lack of minutes on the pitch. He said:

"He’s done well. Listen, good luck to him if you can get it. Staying at Man United is a great gig, but I look at him as a person, are you really going to be happy sitting there all these years.

"There are players who are happy to just sit at clubs and not play and just chill. Winston Bogarde did it at Chelsea for about three or four years. Signed a big deal and commuted in from Holland.

"If I was in the squad with someone like that I wouldn’t talk to them. They are a waste of time, why would I chat to you and give you any energy, taking that away from my other teammates who are here to play and go into battle for 90 minutes every week."

The defender is said to be on £110k-per-week at the club and has made eight appearances since the start of the 2019/20 campaign. Jones has suffered 22 separate injuries for United, with his latest one keeping him out for 78 competitive matches.

This shows how unreliable he is due to his injury situation and Howe should not be trying to take a risk with the dud in January. Instead, the Magpies should try to sign a player with recent first-team involvement so that they can hit the ground running in the second-half of the season.

AND in other news, Forget Hayden: Newcastle gem with 9 duels won was Jones' real hero vs Brighton...