John Stones, the most expensive defender in English football, has been at the heart of Manchester City’s defence this season since his summer move to the Etihad. The defender was signed by Manchester City for £47.5 million, and the young center back has already shown why he’s worth that much money with superb performances this season.
His development has been attributed to the fact that David Moyes, the former Manchester United and Everton manager left the club during Stones’ development, according to former teammate Shane Duffy.
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Martinez was the best thing to happen to Stones
Shane Duffy, who currently plays for Brighton, spoke highly about the quality of his former teammate. He attributed his development to the arrival of Roberto Martinez, who was sacked this summer after a disastrous season.
Duffy, went on to say that Moyes wanted Stones to become more defensive, while Martinez encouraged Stones to develop his ball playing skills as a defender, The best thing for him probably was Moyes leaving. He developed under Martinez into the kind of player he has become, played him at right-back. Moyes wanted more of a defender.”
Duffy praised his former teammate and said, “He signed and we played a lot in the reserves together. You could tell straight away he was a very good player. That’s one of the reasons I had to leave. He was that good and he was obviously ahead of me. There are no hard feelings about that. I hope he goes on to do well.”
Calm influence at the back
Stones’ ability to be calm in the face of onrushing danger has been the most noticeable feature in the youngster, and His composure and ability to not get ruffled has drawn comparisons with another classy English defender, Rio Ferdinand.
The youngster’s risk taking on the ball caused ire among many Everton supporters last season and the English international was also dropped from the team.
Under Guardiola, Stones has matured as a player and has shown consistency in his game.
The Englishman was part of the Everton squad which disappointed last season. Roberto Martinez, the then Everton manager, defended the criticism laid upon Stones and stated that as a young player he was still ahead of the curve and he would one day be the best centre-back in English football.
Stones was also a part of England’s Euro 2016 squad but he didn’t make any appearances in the tournament, with Roy Hodgson preferring the duo of Chris Smalling and Gary Cahill.
