City star John out to leave heartache in past
or b been throughh h a bd bad patch.h For me, it’s not about what pressure comes from the outside, it’s about me, knowing that I haven’t done my job as well as I should have done.
“It’s about making mistakes in games and probably beating myself up more than I should do, really.
“You take it out on yourself because you think that you have let your team-mates down and yourself down, and that’s what hat hurts.
“But, afterr the season had finished, I said aid to Pep that it was a great experience and a very positive one for me.
“I learned d so much with game time, new competitions like the Champions ampions League, and I felt I have grown massively as a player from the start to the end.
“That was why I made the switch to come here and improvee as a player andd person, and dI I think I did massively.”
Having ended ded the season positively, Stones has that predicteddi d“a “specialil season”,” withi h Ci City boss Guardiola challenging his stars to sweep the board with a trophy blitz. “It could be a special year, definitely,” said Stones. “The new players that have been brought in have gelled straight away because of the type of group we are and the players we have. “It’s quite easy for new guys to fit in at City – I found that last year. I feel it’s going to be a special season, in that we want to push for everythinge and give 100 per ce cent i n every competition. “That’s the stand standard we have to set and we owe it to ourselves. We want to win title titles and we’re definitely going t to push for it.” Guardio Guardiola has been working his City stars hard d during their preseaso season tour of the US, w with Stones reveal vealing he’s drilling them to be ada adaptable to play a t hree- man ba backline and a co conventional ba back-four. That’s a cha challenge he’s happy to accept and hopes theth negativity around his game will now b be a thinghi of fh the past. “’“I’m a big enough lad now to know that I should just get over it and do what I have to do, by getting out on the training pitch and correcting the faults,” Stones said.
“But I think a lot of emphasis is put on the mistakes, rather than the good things.
“Maybe 60-70 per cent of the season is positive, but that’s how football works, I guess, and it probably happens too much.
“What matters is how I feel, and if the manager is happy, and my family are happy – that circle is who I should listen to.
“But y ou grow more knowledgeable during the time you play in the Premier League. Every new manager, new chapter, has been a learning curve.
“Pep has given me a lot of confidence and tips and pointers, not only him, but the other players as well.
“These are the guys that have won trophies and t hat’s what I’m aspiring to.”
And Stones is confident England pal Walker can be an influential cog in the City team.
He added: “I played with Kyle for England, so I know how he plays. You get to see how he plays on TV, but I also know him on a personal level too.
“Walks has fitted in well straight away and, personally for me, it’s exciting to play with such top- class players.”