Do Everton have an advantage in pursuit of Manchester United’s Phil Jones?

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Everton will not be the only Premier League side interested in Phil Jones if Manchester United decide to let the defender leave Old Trafford.

There have been 10 players who have moved directly from Manchester United to Everton in the Premier League era, from Andrei Kanchelskis and Jesper Blomqvist, to Morgan Schneiderlin and Wayne Rooney.

There appears to be a mutual respect between the two clubs with Manchester United signing a number of players from their blue-clad colleagues over the years too. So the Toffees will be hoping that this gives them the advantage if the Red Devils do decide to part company with Phil Jones this summer.

As reported by The Times, Everton manager Sam Allardyce is keen to reunite with his former Blackburn Rovers prospect at Goodison Park.

Defensive issues have been Everton’s Achilles heel this season and it is understood that Allardyce wants to build his back-line around Jones, who could be forced out of Old Trafford with Manchester United in dire need of new centre-halves.

But if Jones, who joined United in 2011 for £16 million, is up for sale then do not expect Everton to be the only interested party. The 26-year-old has struggled with injuries over the years and can look as erratic as a budding teenager at times but has a vast amount of Premier League experience as well as almost a quarter century of England caps under his belt.

But the road from Manchester to Merseyside is one well travelled and the presence of former Old Trafford teammates Rooney and Schneiderlin at Finch Farm could make Everton the obvious destination for a player who could benefit from a fresh start.