John Stones has admitted that losing both the Champions League final and European Championship final in 2021 has given him added motivation to try and help England to World Cup glory. The Manchester City defender has so far played every single minute of England’s World Cup campaign in Qatar, and is gearing up to face France in a crunch quarter-final clash on Saturday. While no England player needs extra incentive to perform well with the ultimate football prize at stake, Stones says that he is desperate to atone for painful past experiences.
John Stones said: “After getting to the Euros final, there’s definitely more pressure; that’s a given. I can only speak for myself but that definitely has added an even greater incentive for us to not let that happen again and to do better.”
However, the penalty shootout heartbreak England suffered at the hands of Italy was not the only painful experience Stones lived through that summer. City lost 1-0 to Chelsea in the Champions League final in Porto, the first and only time the Blues have appeared in the showpiece fixture.
John Stones said: “I can’t have that feeling again, it was horrible. It wasn’t a good summer for me. It was difficult mentally losing the Champions League final and then losing the Euros, it was not good. It’s about keeping positive and doing everything we can to have a successful tournament.”
England face a huge test against France, but Gareth Southgate’s side have made good progress at major tournaments in recent years. In 2018 they reached the semi-finals before going one better at Euro 2020. Now Stones and his teammates want to go all the way.
John Stones said: “My personal goal is to of course try and win it, that’s always the target. I believe when you go into a competition you see how far it can take you. I believe in bettering yourself from previous experiences as well, so if we better our performance from the last World Cup then we’re making steps in the right direction.”
