Chelsea defender Gary Cahill has backed Manchester City man John Stones to learn from his mistakes and become a top player for club and country.
Stones came under fire following a few lapses in concentration against Scotland on Friday, despite England winning 3-0 – with a clean sheet for Stones and co.
The Manchester City defender is renowned for his risk-taking at the back, with some loving him for it, and other berating it. Pep Guardiola has certainly put his faith in the Englishman for his club, and Gareth Southgate has too.
Stones joined Manchester City for a fee in the region of £47m from Everton in the summer, which has perhaps made his errors seem more clear to onlookers – with the added pressure of his price tag.
Speaking to The Daily Mail, Gary Cahill said this about Stones:
The potential is there for him to do whatever he wants to do. He’s a great lad off the pitch, personality wise you have to look at that as well. Is he a boy who is going to take on advice from people?
Is he going to listen to everybody and soak that up? He certainly is. There’s no reason he can’t go on and have the career he wants to have. He is a different type of player but I think everyone is aware of his ability.
Again, another bit of your character – I feel he’s a guy who can deal with that, who can be fine with that. He’ll learn from his mistakes and from the things he’s doing very well, which is more than the mistakes.
He’s doing a lot of good stuff over there and he’s obviously highly regarded there. He’ll build confidence, his manager has obviously got confidence in him. When your manager and your team-mates have confidence in you, you take the criticism on the chin and keep going. He’ll be fine.
Stones is expected to feature again against Spain on Tuesday, where he will be given another chance to impress for his country.
