John Stones put on a performance worthy of any player of the match in Manchester City's FA Cup final.
The FA Cup final was 48 minutes away as John Stones infused new energy into the azure sea that gathered at the west end of Wembley Stadium.
The Manchester City defender, after receiving a short pass from goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, was quickly intercepted by 4 Manchester United players and it seemed that Barnsley Beckenbauer would have no way out as the press sometimes called. Yet somehow, he escaped any potential danger without breaking a sweat.
Blocked by Marcus Rashford, Stones spun just inside his box, edged past Christian Eriksen as if he wasn't there and made a composite pass to Kyle Walker, who was stationed on the right flank. From a situation that could have turned embarrassing, the Stones got out of it with ease, as did at Man City.
The most impressive part of this plot, however, is the Stones dropping deep from defensive midfield to receive the ball. Unlike recent weeks, where he started at right-back and moved up midfield when City had the ball, Stones started in an all-round defensive midfield, partnering Rodri at the end. engine room. The England international, who will hope to help City win a historic treble when they face Inter Milan in the Champions League final on Saturday night in Istanbul, has excelled alongside the Spaniard. , direct the play and pass between the lines to score. game. ball. In that sense, he is in a league of his own and his performance, if not for Ilkay Gundogan's two goals, would probably have been enough for him to win the man of the match award.
Having just turned 29 last weekend, the wine-aged Stones are slowly maturing, inspired by Pep Guardiola's outstanding coaching talent. Although he has always been a confident centre-back, unafraid to rush from a back four to take City forward, his vivacious ability in midfield is a new trait that Guardiola has helped him out. it develops.
Speaking after a 3-0 win over Bayern Munich in April, a match in which Stones swapped right-back for a defensive midfield role as City controlled the ball, the former Everton ace said:
"It's been a huge learning curve for me. I am always learning and trying to improve.
"It's not just me, everyone rotates and plays in different positions throughout the game. It doesn't happen naturally when I'm in the forward position but I'm willing to keep trying to improve and read on. match as well as promote his qualities and skills to the team.
"I give my all and I'm as positive as possible when I get the ball. The coach put me there because he sees what I can do in training."
John Stones was special in Manchester City's win over Manchester United at Wembley. John Stones was special in Manchester City's win over Manchester United at Wembley.
While his performance against Bayern in this combined role was impressive, his performance against United at Wembley, where he was asked to forget his defensive duties, was outstanding. sharp. He showed class in every part of the game and was an important contributor to City's hopes of winning the treble.
As expected, United moved Bruno Fernandes to their right flank, which allowed Fred to link up with Casemiro at the end of their midfield with Eriksen pushing into a more forward role.
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