Phil Jones is back to full fitness but does he have a part to play at Manchester United

'You saw Jones tonight. Arguably, the way he is looking, he could be our best-ever player.'

Sir Alex Ferguson was speaking amid the jubilation of Manchester United's 13th Premier League title win in 2013.

His own personal legacy long since secure, his wildly successful 27-year mission complete, Ferguson believed he was handing United over in good shape.

He thought Phil Jones would be one of the pillars of a continued dynasty of glory at Old Trafford. It was a time when the strapping and brave England international, then 21, was being compared through misty eyes to Duncan Edwards.

Equally capable of playing at centre-half or right-back, Jones was even trusted by Ferguson to play in midfield to counter Sami Khedira and Xabi Alonso in a Champions League tie with Real Madrid.

There seemed no ceiling to his career trajectory but unfortunately football has a habit of kicking you in the knackers.

Jones has suffered repeatedly with injury setbacks. Transfermarkt lists 23 separate issues during his United career, the latest being the serious knee injury he has spent the past 18 months battling back from.

It means a decade at United has seen Jones play 224 times, less than half the games the team has played.

In the 2013-14 campaign, he featured in 39 games but hasn't topped 30 since, amid what must feel like a recurring nightmare of his body breaking down and yet more patient recuperation in the gym.

And in the meantime, United had little choice but to move on without him. The managers post-Fergie - in particular Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho - all had their own interpretations of what made a suitable centre-half.

It saw van Gaal spend £18million on Marcos Rojo and Mourinho sanction the £30m purchase of Eric Bailly and £31m on Victor Lindelof.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's time has seen £80m splashed out on Harry Maguire and now £42m on Raphael Varane, unveiled to rapturous acclaim before the 5-1 win over Leeds on Saturday.

Had Jones stayed injury-free, he could easily have been the mainstay of United's defence all the way though that period and United would have saved millions. But it wasn't to be.

Jones is now fit again following knee surgery in June last year and another year of pain-staking recovery after that. He made a 30-minute comeback in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Burnley at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

It was his first match action since a mud-stained outing at Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup fourth round back in January last year.

There has been talk of a move away from United but Jones will be staying for this season and intends to fight for some game time.

He will be fifth-choice centre-back in Solskjaer's squad behind Maguire, Varane, Bailly and Lindelof but United will compete in four competitions as always so there should be an opportunity for game time but barring an injury crisis, it is likely to be limited.

Sportsmail understands Varane didn't ask for Jones's No 4 shirt but it's clear the first-choice partnership for Solskjaer will be the captain Maguire and the French World Cup winner.

Jones, who earns £130,000-a-week, has two more years on his four-year United contract signed as recently as February 2019.

Solskjaer has shown faith in the defender during his lengthy recovery but his injury record would certainly have made him a gamble to any club interested in him.

'I've had similar troubles [with injury] in my career,' Solskjaer said of Jones recently. 'He's such a professional, good lad, and it's great to see him ready to train again and then hopefully get game time soon.

'If he can play in the Under-23s to start with, or we can arrange something behind closed doors for him, because I know exactly the feeling of being out for so long. You just want to feel your way in.

'He's always served the club, but it was time for him to look after himself and his own health.'

So we can expect to see Jones getting back up to speed in the Under-23 side with the hope of a first team return in the autumn.

His last few outings before the Tranmere game weren't great, with Solskjaer at the wheel full-time but struggling to keep United on course.

Jones played in a 3-3 draw at Sheffield United in which they fell two goals behind before mounting a thrilling comeback to lead before Oli McBurnie scored in the last minute.

There was also a Carabao Cup semi-final in which United were schooled by Man City and a 2-0 home defeat to Burnley which represented a nadir in Solskjaer's reign. Significant progress has been made since that low point with United title contenders again.

With his facial gurning as he chases after opponents and the ball, Jones is sometimes a figure of fun for the social media meme generation of football fans.

But it takes an especially strong character to come back from so many injury blows during what should be the pomp of his career.

Jones has always been bullish about his record, saying: 'People can make their own opinions up, people can talk.

'Ultimately I've won the Premier League, been to two World Cups, been to a Euros, played in the Champions League, won the Europa League, the FA Cup.

'They are the stats. That's what I have done.'

Indeed, Jones can be viewed as one of the last remaining links to a time when United did actually win silverware on a regular basis. That experience could prove invaluable in Solskjaer's dressing room at crunch moments this season.

It doesn't look too likely Jones will become a club legend as Ferguson predicted but it is to be hoped he remains free of injury to enjoy a productive second phase to his career.