John Stones

Keith Hill, his former manager at Barnsley

Even when John was an apprentice at Barnsley, we knew he was a special player. It was down to his attitude: everything was geared towards his career and he had a winning mentality. It was his outstanding character that made him stand out.

John is a disciple of the game. He wants to learn, he wants to improve. He had that desire from a young age and was always grounded, despite being so gifted. There was no arrogance. We knew we had a Rolls-royce of a player. It was just a question of nurturing him and making sure he was not over-exposed.

You have to applaud the bravery with which he plays – it is how he has played throughout his career. It has helped that he has never been a materially ambitious person. At the end of his career he wants to be counting his medals, not his money.