Another Premier League team is interested in John Stones, and Arsenal now have some competition in the transfer race.
A surprising Premier League club is now interested in signing free agent John Stones.
Even though he played a key role in England’s run to the World Cup semi-finals, Stones doesn’t have a club as the new Premier League season begins and players gear up for pre-season training.
The 32-year-old’s contract with Manchester City ended in June. He leaves the club as one of their best defenders, helping them win 19 major trophies over 10 years at the Etihad.
Last season, Stones only made nine Premier League appearances, even though he said he was mostly fit. Then-coach Pep Guardiola preferred a centre-back pairing of Marc Guehi and Abdukodir Khusanov, with Ruben Dias featured in 26 games.
Though Stone was no longer needed at City, reports say Arsenal, the current Premier League champions, are interested in signing him. The Sun recently shared that Arsenal want him on a free transfer as backup for William Saliba, who’s out with a serious back injury from the World Cup and might need surgery.
Stones has worked with Arsenal’s manager, Mikel Arteta, before when Arteta was an assistant at City.
But Arsenal might face competition from London rivals Chelsea. Sky Sports said Chelsea’s coach, Xabi Alonso, is thinking about signing Stones to bring more Premier League experience to the team.
Since Alonso arrived, Chelsea have sold players worth £130 million and expect more to leave before the September 1 deadline. Stones’ England teammate Trevoh Chalobah might move to Serie A, and defenders Benoit Badiashile, Malo Gusto, and Axel Disasi could also leave this summer. Chelsea have also talked to Crystal Palace about signing French centre-back Maxence Lacroix, with Palace asking for over £55 million.
Alonso has welcomed new players Geovany Quenda, Marco Palestra, Denner, Dastan Satpaev, and Emmanuel Emgha, while Marc Cucurella, Andrey Santos, Tyrique George, and Jimmy-Jay Morgan have left the club.
Stones has dealt with injuries throughout his career and even thought about retiring in 2024. But he changed his mind and now wants to keep playing both for his club and England.
In an interview with BBC Sport, Stones said: “It was a tough time when I thought about retiring, and I hope I don’t feel that way again. We all compare ourselves to other players and their journeys, and I wondered why this was happening to me and not to others. I had to be really strong mentally, and I’m proud I got through it. One of my biggest achievements is coming back from setbacks and playing at a high level again.”