Is he feck as good as Rio was. You could see Rio's talent a mile off, hense why Leeds, then us, made HUGE deals for him, deals unheard of for defenders at that time.
John Stones | Done Deal
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The comparison is inevitable but not for me. Ferdinand had just come off the back of a very good World Cup and was established at club and international level, played in a Champions League Semi etc.
Stones was very average last season and unable to displace Cahill or Smalling for England.
He's got potential no doubt but I'm not totally convinced. I wouldn't pay £50m for him, or even close to it, but that's just my opinion.
36m on Otamendi, 42m on Mangala. 50m on Stones.
That's over 100m on complete garbage
That's over 100m on complete garbage
36m on Otamendi, 42m on Mangala. 50m on Stones.
That's over 100m on complete garbage
I still think theres a player in Otamendi personally, he was brilliant at Valencia.
You're being generous calling him average last season. Had the positioning sense of someone who turns up to Glastonbury on the first day and puts his tent up next to the portaloos.
I was really, you're right.
Maybe the best analogy I've seen for positioning and for a performance being well S...
Better than Rio? HE's not even close to Rio one bit.
I can't say I watch Everton so I really would not know
just a question to ponder about.Young Rio at West Ham wasn't too disimilar to Stones actually. Similar sort of complaints, overplaying, questionable positioning etc. I thought back then he would never become a great defender, But he kicked on when he went to Leeds and never looked back.
I think Stones has the talent to go on and become a very good CB under the right guidance.
I think Stones has the talent to go on and become a very good CB under the right guidance.
Agreed, I remember being ecstatic when we got Rio. He'd got to a CL semi-final with Leeds couple years before and had a fantastic World Cup that summer, he was world-class with concentration issues, and he could be a bit too relaxed. Stones still has much to prove even if he is very talented.
Lol the forum is comedy gold.
No chance million miles off
Leeds had bought Rio for a world record fee for a defender. That's why we had to do the same too. That explains the context of that fee.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/2140871.stm
Only read some posts on the last page first and was terrified we could pay 50 mil for him. Relieved to hear it's City who could be paying this.
Good, this happens when you can't bring through your own homegrown players.
Good, this happens when you can't bring through your own homegrown players.
I said before, but whilst Stones has had a poor season, it seems very premature to write him off. He seems the type of player Pep would really appreciate - obviously he needs to improve in some areas but I suspect that Pep could see him as an unpolished gem, and mould him into a new Pique.
That said, something's gotta give with the City defence, they already have Kompany, Mangala, Otamendi and Denayer who will be pushing for a first team place. If Stones comes in then surely one of Kompany or Mangala would have to be on the way out.
That said, something's gotta give with the City defence, they already have Kompany, Mangala, Otamendi and Denayer who will be pushing for a first team place. If Stones comes in then surely one of Kompany or Mangala would have to be on the way out.
And Leeds & United are huge rivals, and Leeds was solid back then. Losing your best defenders to your big rival would deserve that fee.
Exactly.
50 mil for Stones is just crazy. But City are desperate . They aren't exactly great with young English players so there is no guarantee that this will pay off over the long term.
Stones was very poor last season,and most of the time it was due to basic mistakes(To sorely blame Martinez for it is just silly)
It's a lot of money but thats not surprising. Everton don't want to sell, they always get good money for their sales, everyone knows City are loaded, City need more English players...it's pretty much guaranteed it'll end up being an eye watering sum.
People writing him off as garbage are being premature though. He's clearly talented and is going to a club where he will not have much defending to do. I think he'll do really well.
People writing him off as garbage are being premature though. He's clearly talented and is going to a club where he will not have much defending to do. I think he'll do really well.
I always find this kind of reasoning very poor.
People saying he will be very good are making predictions with as little hard evidence as the other side .
Considering that a player statistically is even more likely to flop than not, saying someone will make it is even more premature
The honest thing is that this can go either way. What most of us are saying it's that it's a very big risk.
I was in the city center today and I'm 99.9% sure I saw John Stones, he had some designer shopping bags and was with a girl. Why would he be in Manchester though? because he's going to city? Maybe he was here just for the shopping.
You know that even a lot of Stoke players are living in Manchester?!?
Cool, I didn't know that, it is a good place to live. Part of the reason for me posting was just to let everyone know I saw John stones.
24 hours later....Daily Mail with the pictures
Are you on the pictures too??
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...and-star-verge-megabucks-Manchester-City.html
I'd commute from Kabul if I were playing for Stoke.
I keep expecting him to come right in games, based on his performances for Valencia, but time and time again he's either making an awful tackle or just so poorly out of position that it puts the rest of the defensive line on the back foot.
I think Pep will correct that. He will come good this season. Mangala on the other hand might be a lost cause.
Do we desperately need an English CB? I think City's hands are tied as they need to up their quota on UK players. For me, I'd rather get a (sadly) foreign player, pay half the price and get something twice as good.
I'm all for signing players to improve the quality of English football, but I just don't think it has what we need right now, which is a more experienced, hard, goal-scoring (would be nice) CB that the younger players can play off the shoulder of.
Seeing how rubbish our defense would have looked this season if it wasn't for DDG, I'd assume that having a proper anchor CB would make it look even better this coming season. Even if we sign a 30 year old Chiellini-mould player, and he sticks around for 3-4 seasons, I really think it would make worlds of difference.
Signing Stones is a risk for me, as we don't know how well he will do on the big stage.
I'm all for signing players to improve the quality of English football, but I just don't think it has what we need right now, which is a more experienced, hard, goal-scoring (would be nice) CB that the younger players can play off the shoulder of.
Seeing how rubbish our defense would have looked this season if it wasn't for DDG, I'd assume that having a proper anchor CB would make it look even better this coming season. Even if we sign a 30 year old Chiellini-mould player, and he sticks around for 3-4 seasons, I really think it would make worlds of difference.
Signing Stones is a risk for me, as we don't know how well he will do on the big stage.
Is Pep THAT good a man-manager? I must admit, I've never really followed him taking a struggling player and making him great. In my opinion (possibly flawed), he generally inherits quite a good team and just makes them play a bit better.
Could you give me some examples of some Otamendi-like turnarounds he's dealt with in the past? (This is not an attack, I'm just keen to go and check out some player performances pre and post Pep.)
P.S, completely agree about Mangala.
Mascherano is technically an example. He was a solid defensive mid Pep converted him in a proper CB. Also I didnt mean it turning a no-name into a talent. I meant he plays in a system where his CBs arent found out too much because of the way his teams are lined up and the amount of possession they have in front of the back 2. But it remains to be seen if he can pull that off in the premier league. In my opinion I think he can. May take 2-3 months but I think he will eventually get there.
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He looks like a hobo in those Daily Mail pictures. Who the feck goes out shopping wearing gym clothes?
Will be interesting to see. I think City's back line will be under a lot more pressure than he's been used to at Bayern and Barca. I completely agree with the sentiment that this is his biggest challenge. Even though Barcelona could go walkabout on occasions, they still had a lot of firepower up top to get the goals they needed. Whether he will have the same at City remains to be seen. Aguero on form is fantastic, but if he's injured, they look a different side.
I think Everton made a huge mistake by not selling to Chelsea for those 40-50 whatever millions a couple of years ago. Now they're in a position where they need to hope for him to take the next step.
Why was it a mistake when it looks like City are going to have to pay even more than Chelsea offered?
Everton signing Koulibaly as replacement would be excellent business. Even if the price is allegedly near enough the same as what Everton want for Stones.
Is that so? Didn't hear about those news. He's been pretty cold for a while. Must be this english core idea they're trying to realize.
Many people
I honestly don't know what it is. I think if you are British and have skill then you are a future worldy, even if you don't have the basics.
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