Matchwinner Mahrez pays emotional tribute
JOHN Stones says City’s players had to take matters into their own hands when playing on the damaged Wembley pitch against Tottenham last night.
Pep Guardiola’s side ran out 1-0 winners at the National Stadium on a surface the City boss said was not fit for football after hosting an NFL game on Sunday.
Riyad Mahrez’s ninth-minute strike - that he dedicated to the late Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the Leicester City owner who died in Saturday’s helicopter disaster proved the winner as City regained their position at the top of the Premier League table and recorded a sixth-consecutive clean sheet.
And Stones said the conditions required extra care from City’s players.
“We knew it was going to be a difficult match,” the Blues defender said.
“We were up against a top-quality side.
“I found out quite late they were having an NFL match on the pitch.
“We had to get on with it. We saw it as a positive, we didn’t try to put any negative spin on it.
“We didn’t want to make excuses. It was the same for both teams and we just tried to play our football.
“You’ve got to take matters into your own hands some times and know what kind of situation you’re in.
“Today the ball was bouncing and we knew that it wasn’t right to try and bring it down and play through the middle because Tottenham press high and they regain the second balls quite well.
“We had to adapt a bit and maybe not play too many risky balls and make decisions differently in certain areas and play maybe longer or be a bit more safe. In the end it worked out well and we got the three points, so that’s the main thing.”
Guardiola was left less than impressed by a surface, but Stones said the City manager’s desire has been the driving force behind the Blues’ positive start to their Premier League title defence.
“His motivation, his desire, his whole work ethic towards us has definitely not changed [from last season],” Stones added.
“I think he’s always striving for bigger and better things and wanting more from us as players. I think that’s why he’s been so successful as a manager over his career. I think it’s just about pushing us every day and making us keep those high standards and seeing where it can take us.”
Stones featured in midfield for parts of the win against Spurs, and says his versatility will come in useful for his side.
“It’s another string to my bow if I can play there to give the manager another outlet as well,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mauricio Pochettino insists his side are still a way off City.
He said: “You cannot compare us with Manchester City, we are a different level. We have still not achieved the level of Manchester City, it is a team that is focusing on trying to win titles. We are focusing on different things, not only to win games. The gap is not big, but we need to respect the gap and we still have not achieved the level of City.”
On the state of the pitch that Spurs will play on for at least the next two months, the Argentinian added: “The circumstance of the pitch for both sides was the same. It was a very competitive game, we conceded so early, you cannot concede so early in these type of games, but we are so proud. It was an even game and we created a lot of chances.”