Phil Jones has insisted that he can fill the void created in the Manchester United defence by the departures of Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic.
Ferdinand and Vidic both left Old Trafford on free transfers this summer to join Queens Park Rangers and Inter Milan respectively, but Jones does not believe that Louis van Gaal needs to enter the transfer market for replacements.
"Of course, proving I'm good enough to replace Rio and Nemanja is ultimately what I want to be doing," the 22-year-old told reporters. "You've got to thrive on the challenge rather than be daunted by it. We've lost two great defenders in Rio and Nemanja, but that's football and we move on.
"We've got good players to replace them and hopefully we can all step up and improve that. If we all stay fit we've got a great chance. That's what we aim to do."
Jones started at the Rose Bowl as Van Gaal's reign got underway with a 7-0 victory over Los Angeles Galaxy on Thursday morning.
Callum Mulvihill
