Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has revealed that he is considering using John Stones as a defensive midfielder this season.
Stones impressed for England at the 2018 World Cup, but the centre-back found it difficult to earn regular starts at City during the 2017-18 campaign due to the form of Nicolas Otamendi and Vincent Kompany in defence.
Guardiola has hinted that Otamendi and Kompany will again be his first-choice centre-backs, but the Spaniard has claimed that there could be a midfield position for Stones due to his ability on the ball.
"John made an excellent World Cup and showed again his personality. I was happy to see him in the last 10 or 15 minutes like a holding midfielder. John maybe can play there. We will see what's going on in the future," Guardiola told reporters.
"In the Premier League there are a huge amount of games and everybody will be involved. John has to know he has to play at a good level because Vincent and Nico are there, and they are going to play.
"Then, they have to play good. In the higher teams in the top tier, when they play in all competitions, you need this kind of competition."
Stones was pushed into midfield for the final 10 minutes of Sunday's Community Shield against Chelsea, which the Citizens won 2-0 courtesy of a double from Sergio Aguero.
Matt Law
