I worked under Kieran McKenna at Manchester United - I’m not surprised by his success at Ipswich

Phil Jones has said he is not surprised by Kieran McKenna’s success at Ipswich Town and thinks Ruben Amorim will face a tough challenge in his first Manchester United match this weekend.

The former defender knows McKenna well from his time at United, having managed the Under-18s before joining the first-team coaching staff of Jose Mourinho and then Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

It was therefore not a shock when Ipswich took a punt on McKenna in 2021. It proved to be an inspired choice from the Tractor Boys, who have enjoyed back-to-back promotions under the Northern Irishman and made a return to the Premier League after a 22-year absence.

“It's no surprise he has gone on and taken Ipswich from League One to the Premier League and have given a great account of themselves,” opined Jones, speaking to Manchester World at a recent CUPRA Pro Am Padel Tour 2024 event.

“I was so impressed [with McKenna],” he added. “When he was in the 18s, I went over and trained a few times when it was internationals, and could see the way he was with the 18s and the way he planned and structured the sessions.

“Then, obviously, Mourinho brought him over to the first team, and then he left and it ended up being Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Carras [Michael Carrick] and Kieran. I have got to say, Kieran and Carras were absolutely fantastic. The lads absolutely loved being a part of the sessions they put on, and the methods and the thinking around the game as a whole.”

Sunday’s clash at Portman Road will be the first time McKenna has faced his former employers, a fact that might get overlooked somewhat given the pre-match build-up will centre around Amorim’s first game in charge.

“It will be difficult, make no mistake about that,” Jones warned. “They've made a change. The new manager has come in, who's young, fresh, and I think he'll have a really good understanding with the players.

“I think they've got some tremendous talent in the end squad. It's just about finding the balance and getting the best out of those individual players and understanding them as people and the roles and responsibilities that they're going to have within the team.

“I think he'll come in and do a really good job. I'm really excited about it, I’m sure the players are and it starts on Saturday against Ipswich.”

As Jones discussed United, one thing jumped out: the continued use of the word ‘we’. The 32-year-old left the club 18 months ago, but his affinity has clearly not waned.

“I say ‘we’ because I was there for 13 years,” he explained. “I love the club; I love the people there. I've got so many great relationships, so it will always be ‘we’ and I'll always be a fond admirer of the club. They gave me so much and gave me a great opportunity to play football.”

CUPRA is the proud sponsor of the Pro Am Padel Tour 2024. For more information visit www.cupraofficial.co.uk.