Man City star John Stones is a symbol of progress in English football
Germany star Shkodran Mustafi claims that Manchester City defender shows how far our game has developed in recent years
Stuart Brennan
John Stones has been held up as an example of just how far English football has developed in recent years.
The Manchester City defender, brought in by Pep Guardiola last summer for a staggering £47million, has had a mixed first season for the Blues.
He has been taken out of the side by Guardiola at times after some high-profile mistakes, although the City boss has staunchly backed the player.
And Premier League rival and Germany international Shkodran Mustafi hailed Stones ahead of the international friendly between their two teams in Dortmund.
"For me he's a classy player who plays the ball a lot and is strong in one-on-one situations," Arsenal star Mustafi told the German national team's official Twitter page.
"He wants to play low balls forward and does it very intelligently. Here you can see that English football has developed.
"The times when they hoofed the ball forward and chased it are long gone."
Guardiola has repeatedly been seen coaching Stones from his technical area, although he claims he does not single out the Yorkshireman for any special attention.
And at the weekend he launched a fierce defence of the player: "John has more personality that all of us in this room, more balls than everyone here," said Guardiola.
"I like that player. I love him. Under pressure people criticise him. I am delighted to have John with all the huge amount of mistakes. I love him.
"I love these kind of guys with this personality. It is not easy to play central defender with this manager. It's not easy.
"Other managers ... defend there, head there, long balls, channel, channel.
"(With me) You have to defend 40 metres behind and make the build up, so it is not easy."
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