"We (City players) bring ideas and solutions to certain things and try our best to better the (England) team as we’ve been so successful." John Stones.
Bellingham equaliser will be a "turning point"
When John Stones stepped into midfield with the ball in the first half against Slovakia, the England centre-back looked around and found nobody was obviously available. Stones acknowledged it was such a contrast to life at Manchester City. “100%,” Stones said.
He was not being critical of England, more referencing the style that Pep Guardiola demands at City. “Everyone at their clubs has got their own style of play,” Stones said. “We come here and we have a clear idea of how we want to play.
“Over the years, Gareth has changed that and it has just clicked because we have been together for so long. It is different, not in a bad way, not in a good way. It’s just how we play. We’re trying to improve on that to get back to where we were before this tournament and in previous tournaments and really hit our standards.”
The City contrast is a legitimate one to raise. “One of the biggest things for me was thinking I knew football before I met Pep,” Stones said. “I quickly realised I knew nothing with how he sees the game, how he wants us to play football and how simply he puts that across to players.”