John Stones, about to leave Manchester: His goals will become a powerful force.

Manchester City will host Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium in the final round of the 2025/26 Premier League season, which will also be the last time England defender John Stones plays for Manchester City.

Stones, 31, joined Manchester City in August 2016 and has made 294 appearances for the "Citizens" and scored 19 goals.

During his 10-year tenure, Stones also won six Premier League titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups, and one Champions League title with Manchester City. Bernardo Silva is among the stars who will be leaving Manchester City with Stones.

In an interview, Stones said, "I think you'll realize here that I don't think anything is impossible. Once we have a goal in mind and something we clearly want to achieve, it becomes a very powerful force. I think what we've done will probably take a long time and a very special team to replicate in the future. To be honest, I haven't really fully digested all of this yet."

"I think this is probably the mindset of a professional player. There is always a next goal, and there are always more things you want to achieve. We have made a lot of history and realized a lot of dreams, which I could never have imagined before."

Stones shared, “The demands here are extremely high, and it is indeed very difficult in some ways, but I always keep an open mind and am willing to learn, understand and master these things. Looking back when I first came here, I was not a typical center-back. Perhaps I am more suited to the football of this era, and 10 years ago, manager Guardiola saw this, and then everyone started to support me.”

“I’ve always believed that this is the right way to play football. I grew up in a youth academy that loved Barcelona and Guardiola’s football philosophy, and we started trying to put those philosophies into practice when we were 16. So, this is almost the way of football that I’ve always understood and been used to.”

Guardiola led Manchester City to a treble in the 2022/23 season, and Stones also played an important role in Manchester City's journey to win the Champions League.

Speaking about his position on the team, Stones said, "I really enjoy and love this role, and I would even like to play it every week. It's almost a completely new position. I have a lot of freedom to use my abilities in different ways, and I also bring different perspectives and more ways to beat the opponent to the team."

“I really enjoyed it, especially the final, where I played such an important role, which makes me very proud. If I could, I would love to experience it all over again.”

Image source: Internet