Manchester City beat Olympiacos 3-0 in Tuesday’s Champions League clash and John Stones was one of many players who came in for praise for his performance.
The 26-year-old was given a rare start at centre-back by Pep Guardiola and didn’t let his manager down. Stones looked assured and solid at the back alongside Nathan Ake, drawing praise from Guardiola and supporters on social media.
Where will Manchester City finish this season?
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
https://twitter.com/DGP17_/status/1323725512917815299?s=20
John Stones is better than Eric G*rcia btw.
— ¹¹⁵ (@MCFCThommy) November 3, 2020
https://twitter.com/ThatchersElbow/status/1323733750342160384?s=20
It was great seeing John Stones play so well again tonight 💙
Welcome back John #MCIOLY #mcfc
— Hewbo 🐝 (@timhewitt1) November 3, 2020
https://twitter.com/Poweller8/status/1323732280616099840?s=20
https://twitter.com/mcfcman66/status/1323749683114713088?s=20
https://twitter.com/Elliemaew13/status/1323771460574433280?s=20
He was very good. Looked assured on the ball and calm in defence. All the players will be needed so it's good to have competition for places.
— Mark Francis (@mark_franny) November 3, 2020
Against Olympiacos, Stones played for 90 minutes, had 91 touches, won one aerial duel, completed 94.1% of his 84 passes, finding a teammate with all six of his long balls, making one tackle, blocking one shot and making three clearances.
The England international has made four appearances in all competitions this season and boasts a 100% winning record with two clean sheets – 3-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers (September 21), 3-1 win over FC Porto (October 21), 3-0 win over Olympique Marseille (October 27), 3-0 win over Olympiacos (November 3).
Stones’ future at City looked uncertain following his dip in form and lack of playing time, but his performance on Tuesday will go some way to convincing Guardiola that he’s worth keeping. Whether the £22.5m-rated centre-back will start against Liverpool on Sunday remains to be seen, however.
In other news, many Manchester City fans say “razor-sharp” Ferran Torres “looks a real player”