{"id":49810,"date":"2026-04-22T19:16:50","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T13:46:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/?p=49810"},"modified":"2026-04-22T19:16:50","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T13:46:50","slug":"john-stones-to-leave-manchester-city-as-free-agent-after-nearly-a-decade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/football\/john-stones-to-leave-manchester-city-as-free-agent-after-nearly-a-decade\/","title":{"rendered":"John Stones to leave Manchester City as free agent after nearly a decade"},"content":{"rendered":"

John Stones<\/span><\/span> is set to part ways with Manchester City<\/span><\/span> this summer, bringing an end to a highly successful nine-year spell at the club. An official announcement confirming the mutual decision is expected next week.<\/p>\n

The 31-year-old centre-back will leave upon the expiration of his contract, closing a remarkable chapter that saw him play a key role in one of the most dominant eras in English football history under Pep Guardiola<\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n

Trophy-Laden Spell at Manchester City<\/h3>\n

Since arriving from Everton<\/span><\/span> in 2016, Stones has enjoyed immense success at City. During his time at the Etihad Stadium, he secured 16 major trophies, including six Premier League titles and the historic UEFA Champions League triumph in 2023.<\/p>\n

His tactical versatility, especially his ability to step into midfield from defence, made him a crucial component in Guardiola\u2019s evolving system.<\/p>\n

Injury Struggles Impact Recent Seasons<\/h3>\n

Despite his achievements, Stones\u2019 recent years have been heavily impacted by injuries. The England international has managed more than 30 appearances in only one of the past five seasons, highlighting ongoing fitness concerns.<\/p>\n

In the 2025\u201326 campaign, Stones has started just four Premier League matches, falling down the pecking order as City reshaped their defensive options.<\/p>\n

Defensive Reinforcements at City<\/h3>\n

Manchester City have been proactive in strengthening their defence in recent transfer windows. The arrivals of Marc Guehi<\/span><\/span>, Abdukodir Khusanov<\/span><\/span>, and Vitor Reis<\/span><\/span> have increased competition for places. Reis has also gained experience on loan at Girona FC<\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n

These additions have further limited Stones\u2019 game time, making a departure this summer a logical step for both player and club.<\/p>\n

Interest Expected Across Europe<\/h3>\n

With his contract expiring, Stones is expected to attract strong interest from several top European clubs looking to add experience and quality to their backline. Despite injury setbacks, his pedigree and leadership remain highly valued in the market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

John Stones is set to part ways with Manchester City this summer, bringing an end to a highly successful nine-year\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":217,"featured_media":49811,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football"],"reading_time":"2 min read","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/217"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49810"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49810\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49812,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49810\/revisions\/49812"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}