Manchester United defender Phil Jones ruled out of Champions League clash with Real Madrid

Sir Alex Ferguson's fears were confirmed when Phil Jones was ruled out of Manchester United's Champions League clash with Real Madrid.

The England defender, 21, had been a major doubt for the second leg since damaging ligaments in his right ankle in the FA Cup victory over Reading two weeks ago.

He missed training on Monday morning and Ferguson confirmed his absence shortly after the session.

'He's not fit. He won't be fit for tomorrow,' said the Scot.

Losing Jones is a major blow for the United manager, who used the player in a defensive midfield role to blunt Madrid’s considerable attacking threat in a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu.

Ferguson, who was joined by Sir Bobby Charlton at the training session, gave Jones every chance to be fit in time, but he had not even started light training until the end of last week after the club’s medical staff estimated a three-week lay-off.

Meanwhile, Ryan Giggs will play a part in what will be the 1,000th game of his career.

There also appears to be a slight concern over Jonny Evans, who trained away from the rest of the first-team squad this morning, doing some light running on an adjoining pitch.

But Robin van Persie, Patrice Evra and Danny Welbeck, who all picked up knocks in Saturday’s 4-0 win over Norwich, trained without any problems.

 
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