Every word John Stones said in emotional farewell address to Manchester City fans | OneFootball

John Stones delivered a heartfelt farewell to Manchester City supporters after his final appearance for the club in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium.

The outgoing centre-back addressed the fans on the pitch after the final whistle in front of a packed Etihad Stadium in what were among his last words as a Manchester City player.

Stones departs having won 20 major honours across a decade in sky blue, including the UEFA Champions League title in 2023 and six Premier League titles, with a host of clubs understood to be tracking his availability as a free agent this summer.

His final game came alongside fellow departures Bernardo Silva and manager Pep Guardiola, with Sunday serving as a shared farewell for three of the central figures of the most successful period in the club’s modern history.

Stones: Man City will always be my home

Addressing supporters on the Etihad Stadium pitch, a teary Stones struggled to contain his emotion as he attempted to put into words what a decade in Manchester has meant to him.

“I can’t express the gratitude that I feel, to feel the love you’ve all given me over 10 years. It’s been a dream come true,” he said.

“From the bottom of my heart, and my family’s hearts, thank you so much! It’s been an honour to wear the shirt in front of you guys, to play for this club: an absolute privilege.

“This will always be my home and I look forward to watching the games from the stands with you. Thank you so much for all the memories and I hope we made everyone’s dreams come true!”

The promise to watch future games from the stands is a touching one – and entirely consistent with what Stones has said throughout the season about his love for the club.

He confirmed his departure in April in an emotional farewell video that described his time at City as having “smashed every dream out of the park” and Sunday, surrounded by the supporters who have adored him for a decade, was the moment it all finally came to a head.

When you love somewhere, you don’t want it to end: Stones

Speaking to Sky Sports after leaving the pitch, Stones reflected on the strange, bittersweet feeling of a farewell he had known was coming for months but had never quite been able to prepare for.

The England international added: “I really wanted to try and enjoy every moment of it, and it’s a bit surreal because you don’t expect this when you join the club, to feel the love, support – it’s difficult. When you love somewhere, you don’t want it to end, and things in life come to an end.

“I feel really lucky and honoured to have played for this club, and to have represented it in the way that we did and what we did on the pitch, off the pitch, the friends we made, the memories we made – it all combines into one and it comes out today.”

The simplicity of “things in life come to an end” carries the quiet sadness of someone who knows they are leaving something irreplaceable.

What does Stones’ departure mean for Manchester City?

Guardiola described Stones in his final press conference as “the only one who has been with me 10 years together” – a detail that gives Sunday’s shared farewell a particular poignancy that goes beyond football.

Stones leaves behind a legacy shaped not just by the trophies but by the transformation he underwent at the Etihad Stadium under Guardiola – from a talented but raw centre-back into one of the most technically complete defenders England has produced in a generation.

He told The National earlier this month that “there is a lot still to fight for” in his career and that a new challenge would be exciting. After 10 years and everything that came with them, he more than earns whatever comes next.