Jones has changed mindset at Man United after spell on the sidelines

Phil Jones admits being off the treatment table and back on the pitch in a Manchester United shirt has given him a new perspective on how he recovers from matches.

The 24-year-old defender has impressed at the heart of the Red Devils’ defence since his return from a ten-month lay-off in November, forming a flourishing relationship with Marcos Rojo.

United are unbeaten in seven Premier League matches since his return, conceding only five times in that period, and Jones is desperate to repay the faith manager Jose Mourinho has shown in him.

But the England international insists he is just as focused on his recovery from matches as he is his preparation, hoping to banish his injury woes once and for all.

“As I’ve got older I’ve become wiser to recovery and realised how important it is,” he said. “When I was younger you think you know it all and after games you probably just go for some food or sit on your PlayStation.

“Now I take it a lot more seriously and recover properly because I know I need to give myself the best possible chance to be as fresh and as fit as I can for the next game.

“[Mourinho] has shown a lot of confidence and belief in me and hopefully I’m repaying that. I’m not a player who needs telling every day in training ‘you’re brilliant, you’re this, you’re that’… but it’s always nice to hear comments from the manager and people around that you’re doing well.

“I’m not under any illusions though, in this game you can be up there one minute and down the next, so I need to keep going game by game and keep improving.”