John Stones Signs New Contract Extension With Man City

Manchester City defender John Stones has signed a new four-year contract extension that will ensure the Englishman is at the Etihad till 2026.

The new deal is a recognition for his exploits especially last season at the heart of the City defence.

The Englishman swapped Goodison Park for the Etihad stadium for a transfer fee of £47.5million and has enjoyed a trophy laden stint so far.

He has won two Premier League titles and one FA Cup not counting multiple carabao Cups and Community Shield trophies.

The 27-year-old didn’t impress in his first few seasons which forced City into buying other centre-backs and hence pushed him down the pecking order.

Following the arrival of Portuguese defender, Ruben Dias, many expected him to be relegated to the bench.

However, he proved his doubters wrong by stepping up his game and winning the competitive battle over Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake to create a solid and formidable partnership with Dias at the heart of the City defence.

Their partnership proved to be a successful one, as they helped City record the highest clean sheets at the end of the 2020/2021 season, helping Ederson to the golden glove.

Stones was also key to the Premier League winning squad as he helped Manchester City usurp Liverpool to claim their third league title in four years. He also helped Man City reach the Champions League final last season.

The Englishman also had a stellar season in international colours, starting all of England’s matches at the Euro 2020 as the Three Lions reached the finals of the European Championship.

Despite losing the final, England had the best defensive record of the tournament, keeping five clean sheets.

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On signing the contract extension, Stones could not hide his feelings as he was very pleased.

“I couldn’t be happier. I love being part of this squad. There are so many quality players here and I know we can continue winning trophies, which is my main focus.

“Working with the manager is a dream – he has taught me so much about the game and I feel like I learn something new every single day.

“The success we’ve had in the last four years has been incredible. To be a part of it has been a dream come true and I just want to continue winning.

“This is the best place for me to play my football and fulfil my ambition.”

City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain said: “This is great news for our club. John is an exceptional footballer and a fantastic defender, whose attributes are well suited to our style of play.

“We knew when we signed him that we were getting a talented centre-back, but he has really matured in his five years here and, as we saw last season, is at the top of his game right now.”

After signing the contract extension, Stones would be looking to fend off competition from Nathan Ake and Aymeric Laporte to cement his place in the first team.

There may be lots of ways to do that, but few are more important than helping City record a clean sheet against Tottenham in their first game of the season on Sunday.

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