England coach Gareth Southgate has praised defender John Stone’s ability to bounce back from a mistake, after the midfielder’s mistake cost his team a goal in Wednesday night’s 2-1 victory against Poland.
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The Stones were caught on the ball shortly after half-time and stopped giving up possession for Poland’s equalizer, making the kind of mistake that plagued his game just a few years ago.
Goal
Poland is even!
Mother makes most of a mistake on the back!
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– ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 31, 2021
Fortunately for England, the Stones held on and played a crucial role in England’s late winner, getting their heads to a corner and setting up midfielder Harry Maguire to volley at home to keep England’s perfect start to World Cup qualification intact.
“We can not hide from the mistake, but it is easy to lie down in these moments, and he did not,” Southgate told Sky Sports after the match. “He saw the game through with his defense and was able to influence with the winner at the other end, so I think John has come through a lot and is a much tougher, more resilient character for that.”
He later added: “Tonight we lost a goal – but the good news was that John in particular recovered quickly, recovered in the game and thankfully also had an important role in the winning goal. He has built a lot of resilience during that period. I did not think that the passport to him helped, it put more pressure on.
GOAL !!
Harry Maguire pushes @England back in the lead!
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– ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 31, 2021
“That’s the key – every player will make mistakes in games. Sometimes they will be punished and sometimes they will not. What you are looking for is that reaction to see how they respond.”
Stone’s progress was also praised by Manchester City team-mate Kyle Walker, who admitted it could have been a different story for the midfielder just a few months ago.
“It just shows John’s character this year,” Walker said. “It has been fantastic. I have worked with him day in, day out at City, and the work he put in to get to where he is now, the performances he shows.
Walker has been impressed by the Stones | PAUL ELLIS / Getty Images
“Six months ago, John Stones probably would not have recovered from it, but he goes up at the other end and gets an assist for Harry Maguire’s winner.
“He’s been fantastic this season. It’s a credit to him, and the work he put in off the field, where no one can see, when he’s gone home and done the extra gym, the extra strength work to get there. is now . “
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