As 2018 draws to a close, we’ll be hearing from some of the England squad on what their highlights of the year were.
We start on Boxing Day with John Stones, as the Manchester City man recalls the unforgettable summer trip to Russia for the FIFA World Cup Finals.
“For me, it’s the biggest stage,” said the former Barnsley and Everton defender.
“We all just wanted to perform and bring everything together on the pitch and everyone did that and can be proud to say it.
“We did a lot of things in the summer to break records, like scoring six [against Panama] or winning a shootout [against Colombia].
“That’s in history now, it’s written and it’s got to be broken, hopefully by us in the future.”
Stones also takes pride from how the England fans grew closer to the players in Russia throughout the competition, as the momentum grew both on and off the pitch before continuing into the autumn when the UEFA Nations League campaign came around.
“It was an unbelievable trip, to do all of those things and change people’s mindset about us and make the nation proud,” he added.
“People were watching the games who don’t normally watch football, they were getting behind us and that’s a powerful thing which everyone in the squad did.
“Hopefully it’s onwards and upwards now.”
Does Stones get your vote for the 2018 England Men’s Senior player of the year? Voting is open now for members of the England Supporters Club, which is FREE to join.
