Good afternoon all. Interesting reading your comments, I for one am extremely happy with the signing, I'm not going to come on here and pretend I've watched John Stones every minute of every game over the past 12 months so interesting to hear your views on his lack of defensive ability - As everyone seems to agree though, he is an extremley talented ball player with huge potential. Personally I think it's a very good deal all round - Pep gets the player he's wanted since the start (it seems), Everton get a very good price for a 22 year old Defender and JS gets the move he clearly wanted.
I believe if there is a Manager in world football to help him reach his potential, Pep is that Manager - I really do think he will thrive our team. Even if is defending isn't the best at the moment, he's young and still learning his trade - In all honesty, I don't actually think he was signed for his defending (Seems strange saying that about a CB!) but for his clear ability to bring the ball out of defence and link with the midfield - something Pep has had in previous sides and one of the reasons his tactics have been so successful.
It will be interesting to see how he develops but I feel this is a signing we desperately needed. Anything is an improvement on Mangala trust me. If (And it's a big IF) we can get Kompany fit, these 2 at CB could be a great partnership.
On a separate note, good to see a big % on here wishing him well or at the very least not ripping him to shreds - a team on the other side of Stanley Park could learn a thing or 2.