John Stones: How defender reclaimed Pep Guardiola's trust at Man City
John Stones has played in four of Man City's last five games after previously seeming on his way out. SSN's Ben Ransom explains on the Pitch to Post Preview Podcast how he turned it around. Watch Man Utd v Man City live on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm on Sunday; kick-off 5.30pm.
Saturday 12 December 2020 17:01, UK
John Stones could be a key figure at the heart of the Man City defence in the Manchester derby on Saturday. That seemed an unlikely prospect a month ago - but the centre back has reclaimed the trust of Pep Guardiola.
Stones has played a major part in four of City's last five games - including his first Premier League starts since the opening weekend of the season - and they've kept a clean sheet in each of those fixtures since defeat to Tottenham on November 21.
"He has been injured and had personal issues but is now settled again… he'll have the chance to show his quality in this team," said Guardiola after Stones' return to the fold against Olympiakos four days after the Spurs game.
The manager has been true to his word, with Stones surprisingly displacing Aymeric Laporte alongside Ruben Dias. The 26-year-old England international then stepped off the bench during the first half against Marseille in the Champions League on Wednesday and looked assured for an hour alongside his French team-mate.
On the back of those performances, Stones now looks likely to start against Manchester United at Old Trafford - and on this week's Pitch to Post Preview Podcast, Sky Sports News reporter Ben Ransom explained how the defender, who appeared to be on his way out of Man City, turned it all around.
Listen to the Sky Sports Pitch to Post Podcast on: Spotify | Apple | Castbox
"I think you've got to give Stones a lot of credit here," said Ransom, who covers Manchester City. "He went away over the summer, when they had that lockdown period, and he worked really hard to try to get himself fit and get himself in a position where, when football was able to resume, he was going to be match fit and able to make the most of his time at Man City, which under Guardiola has slipped a little bit.
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"There's an element of confidence here and I did have some sympathy. Guardiola, as we know, is a manager who demands absolutely 100 per cent from his players at all times and he's a really intense character to be around. For some players that's a natural fit and for others it takes a bit of getting used to.
"I think with Stones it took a bit of getting used to. The thing with Stones is, the criticism of him always was he had a mistake in him. And when he made that mistake, quite often, unfortunately for him, City were punished - and Guardiola was on the touchline, giving him both barrels every single time.
"I watched a lot of City when Stones was in his previous spell and you could see any time he did anything he was almost glancing over to the bench, just to see what Guardiola's reaction would be. That's not a position for any player or sportsperson to be in. You can't be feeling you have the pressure of something extra on your shoulders when all you want to do is go and perform.
Stones went away, got himself fit, and he came back with an attitude that said, 'I'm going to make the most of my time at Man City, otherwise my time at the club is up'.
"To be fair to Stones, he went away, he got himself fit, he tried to get himself into a position where he wasn't going to be restricted by these niggling injuries, and he came back with an attitude that said, 'I'm going to make the most of my time at Man City, otherwise my time at the club is up'. And he has proved to Guardiola that, at the moment, he's in better form than Aymeric Laporte, who all we spoke about last year was the fact he was missing and how big a loss that was.
"So he has already surpassed who we thought was their best central defender because of the way he's playing, and because of that he has kept a hold of his place.
"He deserves a lot of credit and I think he'll be back in the England team if he continues in that vein."
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City's five clean sheets in a row and improving defence
Stones hasn't played for his country since November 2019 and is currently on 39 caps but his more immediate concern will be maintaining his place in this City side and adding to the five major trophies he has won with the club since joining in 2016.
Stones has started just 15 of a possible 48 Premier League games since the last season, and now consistency is key. However, he has helped by playing in a backline which has tightened up significantly.
"Ruben Dias has settled in very quickly," said Ransom. "City are very, very happy with that signing, and Laporte is getting minutes - there's no doubt he'll come back to the player he was, they're just trying to get him back to some sort of form.
"Defensively City actually look really, really good. They've not conceded now in five games, they haven't conceded a goal in 475 minutes - Giovanni Lo Celso for Spurs the last goal they conceded.
"They've done really well on that front and that's a criticism that has previously been levelled at this team: they can't defend properly.
"Well actually, they've started to show they're building a proper backline again which could - could - win the Premier League title back."
Will Stones be a regular fixture in that backline? An impressive Manchester derby performance could put him on track for a sustained run of games in this improving City side...
Pitch to Post Preview: Man Utd v Man City preview; Plus Tottenham analysis, Arsenal's attack, and Liverpool's strength in depth
This week on the Pitch to Post Preview Podcast, Peter Smith is joined by Sky Sports News reporters James Cooper and Ben Ransom to discuss the Manchester derby, including whether David de Gea will be dropped, why John Stones is back in the City side, and how it could all play out.
Their colleague Michael Bridge is on the line to discuss Crystal Palace vs table-toppers Tottenham, plus Sky Sports Data Editor Adam Smith has the numbers behind Arsenal's attack and Liverpool's strength in depth - as well as his Pitch for what will happen in the Premier League this weekend!
Listen to the Sky Sports Pitch to Post Podcast on: Spotify | Apple | Castbox
