Manchester City were held to a 1-1 draw against West Bromwich Albion, but there was one surprise absentee from the side – John Stones.
The 26-year-old was dropped from the starting eleven and left out of the matchday squad by Pep Guardiola despite making three consecutive Premier League appearances and helping to keep three clean sheets on the bounce.
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Before kickoff, Guardiola explained his decision to the Manchester Evening News, saying : “It is not rotation. I think today all the managers put the best XI to win the game. I could select another one but I decide on this one. It’s nothing special.”
Stones should feel hard done by, however, as he’d been in fantastic form and hadn’t conceded in his last 282 minutes of Premier League football. In his absence, City conceded a first half equaliser to West Brom and never managed to retake the lead.
The England international had previously started alongside Ruben Dias at centre-back but was dropped for Nathan Ake and didn’t make the bench over Aymeric Laporte. Instead, Guardiola packed his squad with attackers and only ended up using one – Sergio Aguero.
Stones can’t be happy with the snub, no matter Guardiola’s excuse, as his confidence now risks being shot after al the work he’s put in to turn his career around.
In other news, Man City ‘court’ Leonardo Bonucci but Juventus have ‘no intention’ of selling