(born
November 4 ,
1984 in
Southport ,
Lancashire ) is an
English Football player. A predominantly left-footed
Central Midfielder , Jonah (as he is affectionately nicknamed by team-mates and fans) is best described as a box-to-box midfielder, equally adept at breaking up opposition attacks or creating and participating in those of his own team. He is 5'11" tall and weighs 10 and a half stone.
David signed for
Manchester United as an apprentice on July 2nd 2001, and broke into the Under-19 side in late 2002, where he was soon made captain. He went on to make 18 appearances (and score 1 goal) as the U19's progressed to the final of the prestigious
FA Youth Cup in April 2003, where a 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough in the second leg saw him lift the trophy at
Old Trafford .
The following season saw David promoted to the reserve team, where he quickly established himself as a regular with some impressive performances in the heart of midfield.
Sir Alex Ferguson was quick to see Jonah's potential, handing him squad number 33 and giving the youngster his first taste of first-team action when naming him as substitute for a
League Cup tie against West Bromwich Albion in December 2003. Although he did not make it onto the pitch, this was a significant achievement and reward for his fine early-season form - form which would see him called up to the England Under 21 squad before the end of the campaign. Although qualified to play for Wales and highly regarded within the Welsh national setup, David opted to play for England and made what was to be his only appearance for the Under 21 side in a 2-2 away draw with Sweden on March 30th 2004, coming on as a second-half substitute for Nigel Reo-Coker.
In the
2004-05 season, Manchester United introduced a second reserve team to play in the Pontins' Holiday League, in addition to the existing FA Premier Reserve League North side. David was named as captain of the latter (widely regarded as the 'senior' of the two) and also made regular appearances for the former, taking the increased responsibility and workload in his stride. His performances saw him knocking on the door of the first team, and after being allocated squad number 31, he finally appeared in his first senior game for the club on
1 December 2004 , coming on as a late substitute as United beat Arsenal 1-0 at home to progress in the
League Cup . A first full appearance soon followed as he was selected in the starting XI for an
FA Cup 3rd round tie against non-league Exeter City at Old Trafford on January 8th 2005. The game ended in a 0-0 draw, one of the biggest FA Cup shocks in years and a major embarrassment for United, but Jonah was the only red-shirted player to emerge from the game with any credit from the media.
Nonetheless, further first-team opportunities were hard to come by, with the experienced duo of
Roy Keane and
Paul Scholes proving impossible to displace. David had to make do with reserve football for the rest of the season, and enjoyed no little success - an unprecedented haul of four trophies followed for the reserves, with Jonah lifting the FA Premier Reserve League North trophy and then captaining the side to victory over Charlton Athletic Reserves (winners of the FAPRL South) to take the national title. He also featured as the reserves secured the Pontins Holiday League title and the Pontins Holiday League Cup, and was once again captain as United were narrowly denied a fifth trophy at the hands of Manchester City Reserves in the final of the Manchester Seniors Cup.
With first-team midfielders
Philip Neville and
Kleberson leaving Manchester United in the summer of 2005, there appeared to a real opportunity for Jonah to establish himself in the senior squad. So it was with some surprise that David was sent on loan to
Coca-Cola Championship side
Preston North End to gain first-team experience, although such a move was not without precedent - former United star and current England captain
David Beckham had also been sent to Preston in the early nineties for the same reason. Allocated the number 31 shirt, David made his P.N.E. debut at Watford on 6th August 2005, and was initially used as a substitute by Preston boss Billy Davies. Some impressive early cameos from the bench soon saw him establish himself as first-choice in midfield however, and he scored his first goal for the club in a 4-0 away win at Ipswich Town on 29th August 2005, curling home a 25 yard free-kick. David played a key role in a long unbeaten run which pushed Preston up into the Championship play-off picture, making 25 appearances (including 3 as substitute) and scoring 3 goals by mid-January 2006.
By this time, Manchester United had been rocked by the departure of captain
Roy Keane to Celtic and injuries to fellow midfielders
Paul Scholes and
Quinton Fortune , leaving them extremely short on numbers in the middle of the park (a problem that was to be exacerbated by a serious injury to
Alan Smith in February). It was widely expected that David would be recalled to provide cover and possibly push for a first-team place, but in another surprising move Jonah swapped Preston for Holland as he joined
Eredivisie side
NEC Nijmegen on a loan deal until the end of the season. Wearing number 5, he again had to spend time on the substitutes bench to begin with, but impressed sufficiently in brief appearances against Ajax and Sparta Rotterdam to be brought on at half-time against ADO Den Haag on 22nd January 2006. He did not disappoint, scoring two goals in a 5-0 rout to secure a place in the starting line-up for the next game, where he again scored twice, this time to salvage a draw against Willem II. One of those goals was from the penalty spot, showing how highly thought-of he already was at NEC.
He has started every game since then, and while NEC's form has dipped, Jonah has continued to impress, becoming something of a fan's favourite at De Goffert. With Manchester United chief executive
David Gill stating that midfield reinforcements will be sought in the summer, this year could be make-or-break for David Jones' United career.
During the match against
Heracles Almelo , he scored a fantastic goal from at least 30 yards, putting the opposition two goals behind. In the match agains
FC Groningen , he again scored a fantastic goal from a free kick, just 25 yards out. That match, he impressed both managers and the entire crowd with his amazing ball control and passing, not losing the ball a single time and receiving a well-deserved Man of the Match award. In the short time he has been with
NEC Nijmegen , he got himself placed second on the Man of the Year list at
NEC Nijmegen , with 134 points, thirty points behind talented striker
Romano Denneboom . The team ended 10th in 2006 and 'Jonah' might be looking to play another year in red, green and black, NEC's team colours, after having signed a new three-year deal at
Manchester United .
