After ten years, 16 major honours (with two more up for grabs), and two PFA Team of the Year nominations, John Stones’ time at Manchester City is ending this year, as he follows Bernardo Silva out of the door in the summer.
Stones, who featured 178 times for City, rode the ups and downs that come with being a four-time Premier League champion, battling through multiple injuries to leave a legacy that will be hard to top for any future sky-blue defender.
Dubbing it a ‘rollercoaster’ tenure, Stones summarised his time at City as a coming of age.
“I came as a kid and now leaving as a man - becoming a father, a husband and, on the pitch, a very fulfilled player,” he said.
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"I lived all my dreams out and lifted all the things that I came here to achieve.”
But, at 31 years old, there are still more balls to be headed, passes to be played, and possibly even a World Cup to hoist in the summer.
So, what’s next for John Stones’ club career, and where could his future home be?
Full circle in the Premier League
Arguably, Stone’s worst ability is his availability, and as time goes on in his career, it might be best placed to find a club that isn’t fighting on all fronts in every competition, putting nearly 60 fixtures on the calendar every year.
Thankfully, there is a club close to his heart that could be looking for some more experience in the back line, and with the possibility of playing some form of European football, Everton has quickly risen as a destination option for Stones.
He spent three seasons in the dark blue outfits at Goodison Park from 2013-16, helping the Toffees to their best finish in Europe in the last 15 years, before his gargantuan £47.5 million move.
With James Tarkowski operating alongside an also injury-prone Jarrad Branthwaite and an ageing Michael Keane, Stones could be the perfect addition to that backline.
Everton has also emerged as a possible landing point for City outcasts in the past, with Jack Grealish rumoured to be making the move permanent, and even reuniting with Phil Foden, who is desperate for game time (although he might be clinging onto hopes of a Champions League offer).
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Aston Villa present themselves as a natural fit, being a successful outfit but able to match decent wage bills, given they spend their entire budget on pay packets over transfer fees.
Europe’s less-demanding opportunities
A player of Stones’ capacity will likely be wanting to play in the top competitions for a few more years, before entering a retirement saga and traveling to Saudi Arabia or the MLS, and Europe’s top leagues seem to be a natural fit for Stones, who won’t be battling bruisers like Chris Wood and Igor Thiago on the weekly - only in the biggest games.
Immediately, the Italian league springs to mind, with other English centre-backs finding solace in the league. An all-English pairing at AC Milan would make sense, while Juve has been scouting the Premier League for defensive solidity.
You only need to think of the likes of Chiellini and Bonucci, or even modern players like Acerbi, to realise defenders in the Italian league can find prime form in their thirties, and who wouldn’t be tempted by Rome, Milan, Turin, or even Como?
Bayern Munich’s fabled ‘easy’ league might even be the best destination for Stones, reuniting with Vincent Kompany and his increasingly English-speaking squad. With Musiala, Olise, and Kane, among others, Bayern’s British influence would be a home away from home for Stones.
Champions League games and select fixtures against Dortmund and Leverkusen as the biggest trials and tribulations, a player with a high ceiling but limited maximum pace capacity would suit the German side.
The City departure is timely for Stones, who might well be hanging up his England shirt after the World Cup, but there’s still more football in his boots, although it looks like he will need to choose between the Premier League’s high-octane 38 games, or Champions League football and sporadic appearances in a European domestic league.
Topics: Football, John Stones, American Football, Manchester City
Jack Marsh