John Stones Steps up for Manchester City
10/25/2024 07:14 PM
A starman at City.
John Stones is no stranger to stepping up when necessary to get Manchester City over the line. His incredible 11mm goal-line clearance to help City secure a crucial win against Liverpool leading to winning the Premier League title in 2019 put him in a special place in the annals of City's history.
The defender has been one of Pep Guardiola's most important players during his time at the Etihad Stadium. The Englishman has grown in leaps and bounds since joining the club from Everton in 2017.
His versatility has been one of his biggest strengths, allowing the manager to deploy him in diverse positions to give the team an added advantage. He has played as a center-back, a right back, a defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder and even a forward when needed.
Although his biggest problem has been staying fit, he has always been a reliable option when able to play. While excelling in his primary job at the back, he is always eager to step forward and get the team over the line when things proved too difficult up front.
Yet, he has recently taken this to another level helping City avoid defeat against Arsenal with a very important goal at the Etihad Stadium. He scored a crucial winner in a league game against Wolves last week and also found the back of the net again in the Champions League against Sparta Prague on Wednesday.
Without her goals against Arsenal and wolves City would have lost crucial points to a title driver and drop further points against struggling Wolves. These are points that could prove crucial in winning the league title at the end of the season just like the points he saved against Liverpool proved to be in 2019.
Fellow defender Josko Gvardiol seems to be taking notes and following his good example as the Croatian has also been in top form this term.
At a time when the team has been struggling due to injuries to key players, it's heartwarming to see even the defenders stepping up to help the team stay within touching distance of Liverpool at the top of the league table.
Missing key players like Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne has not been easy for the Blues to cope with. But the likes of Stones and Gvardiol are taking matters into their own hands by stepping up to bail the team out when necessary.
However, given the 30-year-old's history with injuries, Guardiola will hope he stays fit for longer this term. With a squad already depleted due to injuries and the sale of Julian Alvarez, any more fitness issues could leave the team further weakened.
Liverpool has now emerged as a genuine title contender this term. Staying strong will, therefore, be important for City as trailing both the Anfield side and Arsenal in the title race could prove a bit too much.
