When John Stones lifted the European Cup in Istanbul last June, he banished the memory of one half of the most painful summer of his footballing career.
In Berlin in early July, he is determined to get rid of the memory of the other half. In 2021, Stones suffered the disappointment of losing a Champions League final to Chelsea in Porto and a Euro final to Italy at Wembley.
“After the Euros final was a difficult, really difficult, point for me,” admits Stones. “Losing a Champions League final and losing that, was difficult to take.
“After that, I said to myself that I never wanted to have that feeling again. It is possible that it might (happen again) but my mindset is to make some history and make one of my dreams come true - get some silverware with England.”
While Stones did fall out of favour for a little while, he has, generally, been one of the mainstays of Gareth Southgate ’s seven-and-a-half year England project. Fifty-eight of his 69 caps have been earned under Southgate, playing in the manager’s first game in charge, against Malta in October, 2016.
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Stones says: “It's been a great journey, a difficult journey at times. We started at a difficult point where the perception towards the national team wasn't great going into tournaments.
“We all wanted to change that, we wanted everyone to be proud of us when we go into tournaments. We did that, I believe, in 2018. And it's grown since then.
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“I feel now it's time for us to go past that step and get something. There's an environment that's been created here that is special. We need to capitalise on that."
The Manchester City man plays a far more conventional central defensive role for England than he does for his club but is still unafraid to play out from the back. And while he is now far from alone in his approach, it was one that brought him some criticism in his early years with the national team.
Stones says: “Those tough times honestly made me as a player. I've always believed in myself that I can do it and I believe that it (playing out from the back) is the right thing to do and I have had the backing of everyone around me.
“I had periods of choosing the wrong moments to do it, so I had to learn. I watched a lot of footage of training and games where I'd not done it right.”
Of course, Stones, 29, does not so much play out from the back under Pep Guardiola as play in midfield. And while you suspect Stones knows it is unlikely to happen, it is something he would be more than happy to do for Southgate.
He declares: “One hundred percent I'd love to do it. But I think Gareth knows how he wants to play, he knows everyone's attributes, my attributes, and obviously watches the games quite a lot. Maybe it's something that we might speak about in the future.”
But right now, Stones is simply loving his game, which is a great sign for Southgate and England. “I’m enjoying my football,” he smiles. “When you enjoy something, you stop thinking too much and you express yourself … and I’m doing all those things.”
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