Stones to leave Man City this summer

'I lived all my dreams' - Stones to leave Man CityImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, John Stones won the Champions League with Manchester City in 2022-23ByMandeep Sanghera, BBC Sport journalist and Shamoon Hafez, Football reporterPublished28 April 2026, 13:11 BST402 CommentsUpdated 38 minutes agoEngland defender John Stones said he "lived all my dreams out" at Manchester City after confirming he will leave at the end of the season.Stones, whose contract runs out this summer, has made 293 appearances since joining from Everton for £47.5m in 2016.He helped City win six Premier League titles, the Champions League, two FA Cups, five League Cups, three Community Shields, the Club World Cup and the Uefa Super Cup."It has been my home for the past 10 years and it will be my home for the rest of my life," said an emotional Stones in a social media post."It has been a rollercoaster in many ways. I came as a kid and now leaving as a man - becoming a father, a husband and, on the pitch, a very fulfilled player."I lived all my dreams out and lifted all the things that I came here to achieve."At the start of my career here I never would thought I would be in this position. Firstly, to achieve everything but to have the love, the bond with everyone. Every dream has been smashed out of the park."Stones was Pep Guardiola's second signing at City, becoming the world's second most expensive defender at the time."I don't think it would have been anywhere near as successful without him," said the 31-year-old."I'm so grateful that I've been able to spend so long with him, win everything with him. I feel lucky and grateful for what he's done for me."<div class="ssrcss-1553su4-ErrorMessage eitf6465"><div class="ssrcss-h7lv7m-StyledInnerContainer eitf6464"><div class="ssrcss-nbxsk2-TextContent eitf6461"><h2 type="normal" class="ssrcss-89o2pv-Heading e10rt3ze0">To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.</h2><p class="ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10">This video can not be played</p></div></div></div>Figure caption, Injuries made Stones 'think about retirement'Stones is the latest long-serving player to exit Etihad Stadium.Kevin de Bruyne, Kyle Walker and Ederson departed last summer and captain Bernardo Silva will leave when his contract expires in June.Despite his time at the club being hampered by injuries, Stones will go down as a firm fans' favourite, telling the club website that hearing the fans singing his name shows there is a "mutual love between us".He has scored 19 goals, including a crucial equaliser Arsenal in 2024, and his match-winning goalline clearance against Liverpool during the 2018-19 title race will long be remembered, helping City to 98 points to win the league by one point.Stones was deployed as a midfielder when City beat Inter Milan in the Champions League final in 2023 to win the Treble.Clouded by injury issuesAn elegant, ball-playing centre-back affectionately nicknamed the 'Barnsley Beckenbauer', the early part of Stones' career was blighted by individual errors, but he settled in to playing a major part in City's success under Guardiola.Silva said this season that Stones is a "special player" and it is "not a coincidence" that the team play better "when John is fit".Stones played in 73% of games for City during his first season at the club, but that has dropped down to 30% this term because of muscular issues including thigh and calf problems.He has managed only 16 appearances in all competitions for…

This excerpt is published under fair use for community discussion. Read the full article at BBC Sport.