Defensive linchpin for his country but a peripheral figure at club level, John Stones is in an unusual situation.
The Manchester City defender is virtually guaranteed to start in England’s World Cup opener against Tunisia on June 18, his excellent display against Holland on Friday underlining his growing importance given Gareth Southgate’s philosophy of playing out from the back.
His passing in Amsterdam was crisp and intelligent. His adeptness at stepping out of the back three and into midfield a growing feature of England’s play under Southgate.
Make no mistake, Stones is one of Southgate’s key men going into Russia.