Alan Shearer knows all about being a key figure for a top club and being an important player for his country in international tournaments.
Having scored 362 goals in 703 club appearances, the former striker also found the back of the net 30 times in 63 senior appearances for England.
In the current European Championship, Gareth Southgate’s side have won one and drawn the other of their two games of the tournament.
Their most recent match saw England draw 1-1 against Denmark, with Harry Kane opening the scoring before the equaliser went in.
Out of the three Manchester City players in the current England squad, the trio of John Stones, Kyle Walker and Phil Foden have started both matches in the tournament.
After the Denmark clash, Shearer couldn’t help but share his thoughts on one particular thing he’s noticed about Stones and how different he’s played for England compared to how he usually performs for Pep Guardiola’s side.
Alan Shearer highlights one thing John Stones does for Man City but not for England
Reflecting on the game he commentated on for BBC One, Shearer said this about Stones on the subject of certain players in the England team not doing what they usually do for their clubs on the international stage.
He said: “Let’s use John Stones as an example. How many times do you see him get the ball and run into midfield in the Man City team? So many times.
“How many times do you see him do it in the last two England games? I can’t remember any.”
Stones has no attacking freedom for England
In the middle of City’s Treble-winning season, Guardiola started to deploy Stones in a hybrid role that saw the Englishman step out into the midfield when in possession and play alongside Rodri.
Back in August,Ruben Dias hailed Stones for the “exceptional” way he adapted to this new role in such a key period of the campaign.
In City’s 1-0 win over Inter Milan in the 2023 Champions League final, the 30-year-old completed all seven dribbles he attempted while playing in his midfield role.
As Shearer mentioned, Stones has not attempted a dribble into midfield in either of the two Euros games he’s completed the full 90 minutes in.
This all says to us that Southgate is not giving the City star the freedom he gets when playing for Guardiola.