What Phil Jagileka said about John Stones

The former Derby County and Sheffield United defender, who spent 12 glorious years at Goodison Park, is still held in high regard on Merseyside.

Being an unwavering leader who never failed his team, he persevered despite Everton’s constantly shifting environment and so witnessed it all.

He most certainly maintained a close watch on Stones’ progress, given he was a teammate to him while he tried to establish himself in the Premier League.

Even though he realized how amazing he was at an early age, he was nevertheless hindered by certain significant weaknesses.

“When he came in, the issue he had was that the defensive part of his brain wasn’t his first thought process,” he said on the Ben Foster show. It had to do with style and everything. I wouldn’t say he struggled when playing for the squad we were on, but there were moments when he took unwarranted chances.

“The people around you weren’t comfortable with you taking risks, pulling a Cryuff, and playing out from the back, but he might have been comfortable doing it.”

Jarrad Branthwaite might be better than Stones was at Everton

After making his breakthrough at Everton, Stones, a young English center-back, was one of Europe’s most exciting young prospects. He was simply yearning to play beautiful football.

After joining Barnsley, he made a quick transition into the first squad and quickly established himself as a key player for the Toffees.

He was not without his flaws, though, as Jagielka pointed out.

There were advantages and disadvantages to that desperate attempt to play in his mold, but when it went horribly wrong, it was breathtaking.

It is hard to argue against Branthwaite’s incredible career and how far he has come, yet there is a compelling case to be made that Stones was not as good a player at Goodison Park as Branthwaite is now.

Even if he too has the grace and poise to play out from the back, his superior physical profile and more composed demeanor make him a far more mature player than the Manchester City player he is now.

He has been a fundamental component of Dyche’s success at Goodison Park and is expected to fetch a much higher price than the £47.5 million they received from the sale of Stones.