John Stones is set to leave Manchester City this summerplaceholder image
John Stones is set to leave Manchester City this summer | Getty Images
Where will John Stones go next after he leaves Manchester City? We look at his potential landing spots on a free transfer.
Few of the players available on a free transfer this summer will have had a career as successful or as decorated as John Stones – and despite his lengthy injury history, few such players will be in quite as much demand. Everton, Coventry City, Bayern Munich, AC Milan and Juventus have all been linked with a move for the 31-year-old already.
That’s a broad range of potential landing spots for a centre-back who has confirmed that he will leave Manchester City when his contract expires after 10 years and at least 12 major trophies, with one or two more on the cards if Pep Guardiola’s side end the season strongly. So where should Stones go to get the best out of the autumn years of his storied career?
Why some of Europe’s biggest sides want John Stones – despite the injuries
While Stones will head to his next club with a rare combination of experience and the proven capacity to contribute towards title wins, he will also take some baggage with him – specifically, a lengthy and worrying injury history.
Stones has started just four Premier League matches in the 2025/26 season thanks to calf and thigh injuries, which followed hot on the heels of foot, hip and hamstring problems which have restricted him to just 64 appearances in all competitions over the past three seasons. Nor as those fitness issues a recent development. Injuries have interrupted Stones’ progress throughout his career.
That’s something that might put off many suitors, and yet some of the most successful sides in Europe are supposedly willing to take a chance on his continued health in order to get their hands on a defender whose combination of technical class and positional acuity have made him one of the best in the game – when he’s been available - over the past decade.
Bayern Munich, AC Milan, Juventus and other elite sides from the ‘big five’ leagues have all cropped up in stories speculating about Stones’ next move. Fabrizio Romano reportedly suggested that he had already been offered to top Serie A sides, which gossip websites such as Caught Offside have suggested that former team-mate Vincent Kompany could bring him to Bayern Munich. None of these stories are verifiable and many will prove to be wide of the mark, but there is at least some chance that elite teams are interested.
For the Italian clubs, in particular, Stones would represent a necessarily affordable way to add experience and quality to their back lines. Juventus reportedly need to raise over £25m this summer to balance the books and AC Milan are watching their bank account closely as well. Free transfers for high-level players will always attract their interest.
Stones’ versatility also counts in his favour this summer. His passing range and positional flexibility in defence means that he can fit into a range of playing styles and tactical schemes. Sides that play a possession-based game will value his control in possession, while teams that want to play fast, counter-attacking football could make use of his accurate long balls.
Throw in his reliable sense of position at the back and his under-appreciated aerial dominance, and the links with some of the continent’s biggest clubs make sense despite the laundry list of injuries. But could Stones stay in the Premier League instead?
Everton & Coventry have both been linked with Stones ahead of the summer
The same sort of relatively tentative early reports have also linked Stones with at least two Premier League sides already – BBC Sport have cited Spanish reports to suggest that both Everton and newly-promoted Coventry are interested, while also mentioning Barcelona as another potential foreign landing spot.
Gauging the sincerity of such interest is challenging, but it’s easy to see the appeal Stones would have for Coventry. He would provide vital top-flight experience to a relatively young squad – immediately becoming their oldest outfield player – and there’s a reasonable hope that he could act as a catalyst for growth in much the same way that Granit Xhaka’s presence improved Sunderland this season.
Everton, meanwhile, don’t lack for veteran presence at the back with both James Tarkowski and Michael Keane on the books, but do need depth and perhaps a defender who’s more comfortable with the ball at his feet and has a broader passing range – Jarrad Branthwaite has improved considerably in terms of his distribution, but has persistent availability issues of his own and the rest of David Moyes’ back line is a little more limited from a technical standpoint.
Everton would presumably appeal to Stones, too, given that he spent three years there before moving to Manchester City back in 2016. A romantic reunion with his former employers may well be his own preference.
The biggest deciding factor for Stones, however, may simply be his salary demands. He is presently paid a reported £250,000 per week at Manchester City – more than he can reasonably expect to earn now, but he may still be tempted to take the best offer. Clubs like Coventry and Everton simply don’t have the financial firepower of, say, Bayern Munich, but otherwise they may be closer to the other major sides mentioned in economic turns that might be expected.
Juventus are struggling financially, AC Milan aren’t especially flush, and Barcelona continue to labour under fiscal pressure after years of mismanagement. If Bayern aren’t interested and the idea of an overseas adventure doesn’t appeal to Stones, then seemingly lesser Premier League sides may well be able to offer just as much.
Another question is simply whether Stones is content to be a back-up at a bigger club or whether he wants to start. That wouldn’t necessarily be guaranteed even at Everton, and certainly wouldn’t be the case in Bavaria. If minutes are his priority, then Coventry may well be his best bet, even if it’s unclear what kind of salary they could offer as it stands.
Perhaps the best fit, however, might be a third Premier League side that have cropped up on the rumour mill, albeit from less reliable sources – West Ham. Assuming they avoid relegation, they will have the money to compete in terms of wages, have a glaring need to improve at centre-back, and Stones would very likely be a regular starter when fit and healthy. The Hammers might just be able to make the most tempting offer.
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