2026-06-16 10:35:58
John Stones has had to “dig deep” to overcome his injury setbacks.
The defender appears set to start England’s World Cup opener against Croatia on Wednesday (17.06.26) and considers his ability to bounce back from injury problems as one of his “greatest achievements”.
Stones – who revealed last year that he had considered retirement due to his injury woes – told BBC Sport: “It was a difficult period when I said that [about retiring] and I hope I don’t get to that again.
“We can all compare ourselves to all the people or different players, different eras and think about how their journey was or how it could have been different and I am a culprit of that – ‘Why are these things happening to me? It doesn’t happen to other people.’
“And I really had to dig deep and I am proud of myself for being so mentally strong throughout and coming out the other end of those scenarios or situations.
“I feel like one of my greatest achievements is to keep coming back from those setbacks, no matter how big they are and being on top form and going back into games and playing at such a high level.”
Stones struggled for gametime at Manchester City in the season just ended but explained how manager Thomas Tuchel “saw the kid inside of me” when he informed the defender that he would be going to a sixth major tournament with The Three Lions.
The centre-back – who left City at the conclusion of the campaign – said: “I love being here and I think that goes without saying.
“But when I got the call off of the manager, I think he saw the kid inside of me, how I reacted it where I couldn’t really control myself.
“It was like the first time, just pure joy coming out of me, and I think that is one of the qualities that he loves – how all of this group can be ourselves as players.”
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