It has been a tough season for John Stones in Manchester City being one of the major injury setbacks the club has suffered so far.
The English defender was ruled out for six weeks after a muscle injury and having returned to play when Rodrigo came out injured in Manchester City’s match against Atalanta, it was obvious the 25-year-old wasn’t totally fit.
So far he has missed out on his club actions and his space in the club had been open with Fernandinho trying to play centre-back with Nicholas Otamendi.
There are speculations on the English centre-back wanting to leave City when the chance presents itself and with him sidelined due to his injury, the chances of him leaving is high.
Stones’ playing time at City has been reduced slightly more this season, with the defender missing most games so far through injury, making his first appearance in a sky blue shirt on Tuesday night since the 3-2 defeat away to Norwich.
He has clocked just 191 minutes (Whoscored)in the Premier League so far this year.
While speaking on TalkSport, former Spurs midfielder and now football pundit had suggested John Stones might look for his way out of Manchester City seeing how greatly his playing time has reduced.
“I really like him, but I think he’s finished there [at Man City].
“For me, I think he’s done, I would look at him and say ‘why wouldn’t he go to Real Madrid?’ – they’ve got Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane, but Ramos is coming to the end and they’re struggling defensively.
“Stones, I think, will suit a team like Real Madrid and be a world-class player again – he’s lost his way at Man City.”
Where he might go to
John Stones has proven his footballing ability in Manchester City. With the prospect he has shown so far, he is good enough for a big-money move and the likely options are either Real Madrid or Arsenal.
By the look of things, it’s safe to assume he won’t leave Manchester City and then go to Arsenal simply because Arsenal does not play Champions League presently. Leaving a club that does for one that doesn’t is simply putting his hopes on Arsenal qualifying for Champions League next season.
He has his mistakes just like every other player out there but he has proven to be up there along with the top quality centre-backs out there at the moment.
Real Madrid is looking more like a sure option for him, even though they have Ramos and Varane in their defense. We can all agree that Ramos is gradually getting to the stage of his life where his legs begin to tire out.
Conclusion
John Stones is world-class and he is good at what he does. With his previous performances for Manchester City, he definitely will have big clubs eyeing him should he decide to leave the club today. Although, the chances are slim but the lack of playing time injury has caused is enough to trigger the thought of going out to explore outside of his comfort zone.
