Zinner's a winner but Stones needs to defeat old pal

And there were more tears when City retained the title on the final day of the season and he celebrated by draping himself in a Ukrainian flag.

- Simon Mullock

JOHN STONES saw how the horror of Ukraine being plunged into a brutal war reduced Oleksandr Zinchenko to tears of anger and pain. 

The England defender was Zinchenko’s team-mate at Manchester City when Russia’s invasion of the full-back’s homeland made him consider joining the Ukrainian army.

When Zinchenko lined up for City at Everton last season, the reaction of the Goodison fans to both him and countryman Vitalii Mykolenko saw their emotions pour out. 

Stones will be desperate to make sure that Zinchenko leaves Wembley a beaten man when England face Ukraine at Wembley today.

But while Zinchenko is now part of the Arsenal team trying to take the Premier League crown from Stones’ City, the centreback’s respect for him remains undiminished.