05 June 2023 , 05:00
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Not for the first time, Jack Grealish summed it up rather neatly.
“You’re a disgrace,” he told John Stones, but not in Jose Mourinho-Anthony Taylor style. It was player recognising player, Stones being a disgrace because he was so unflappably majestic on the grandest of stages.
Not content with being the Barnsley Beckenbauer, Stones has now morphed into a hybrid of the Kaiser and Patrick Vieira. Jamie Carragher had other legends in mind when eulogising Stones for his performance in the FA Cup final triumph over Manchester United, comparing him to Lothar Matthaus and Matthias Summer.
“He is an incredible player,” said Pep Guardiola. “Stones has the quality to pass the ball and he can arrive into the attacking positions to control the play.”
And, of course, he can defend, as one second half block on Alejandro Garnacho showed on Saturday. Only just turned 29, Stones has truly come of age and credit for that has to go to the player himself - for his perseverance, for his professionalism, for his ability to recover from setbacks and emerge as an even better footballer.
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Don’t forget, Stones was left out of the England set-up for 16 months from November, 2019. And some ominous writing appeared to be on the City wall when - in the summer of 2020 and with Aymeric Laporte and Eric Garcia already on the books - Guardiola signed Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake for a combined £100million.
But Stones is now an essential cog in Pep’s winning machine and while his performances deserve all the acclaim they are getting, the England defender’s stunning form is another testimony to his club manager’s brilliance.
Stones has played a key role for City this season as they hope to win a historic treble (Getty Images)It has not always been easy for Stones under Guardiola, who made the centre-half one of his early signings in the summer of 2016. But seven years on, Guardiola has redefined Stones’ role and the pair are clearly on the same wavelength.
And Erik ten Hag clearly did not have a plan to stop Stones having a decisive influence on the FA Cup final. The Manchester United manager had a plan for Bernardo Silva and Kevin de Bruyne - although even that was foiled by a subtle tactical switch from Guardiola in the second half - but was powerless to prevent Stones dictating the play.
In an era when so many ‘new’ ploys are merely repackaged old ones, the deployment of Stones by Guardiola is a genuine tactical innovation. Going forward, Stones’ club role should give Gareth Southgate food for thought.
The centre-back has enjoyed an impressive career resurgence (Getty Images)The England manager is fond of using twin midfield pivots and if Stones could double up, then it would give Southgate an extra attacking option. That is for the future but, for now, it will be fascinating to see how club coaches try to counteract the Stones effect.
Whatever they come up with, Pep and Stones will probably be one step ahead. “Working with the manager is a dream - he has taught me so much about the game,” said Stones when he signed a new five-year contract in August, 2021.
“I feel like I learn something new every day.” And as a master and pupil combination goes, there is probably no better one in modern football.