Premier League Team of the Season 2017/18 predictions

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MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – APRIL 08: Manchester City player John Stones in action during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Hull City at Etihad Stadium on April 8, 2017 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) /

CB: John Stones /// Manchester City /// 2016/17: 27 apps, 92% pass accuracy, 1 yellow card

Hear me out.

Look, I get it. Not only is it a Manchester City center back but it’s not even Vincent Kompany. Pep Guardiola teams can be defensively frail. Stones looked better on the ball than off last season, which isn’t typically a great quality for a center back.

But, all those reasons are why he’s getting the nod for the second center back here.

Kompany is about as likely to have an injury-free season as Daniel Sturridge is. Guardiola’s teams can be defensively frail, but in his first match he went for three central defenders. They bought £125 million worth of fullbacks, too. Stones looks better on the ball than off it, which is why if City succeed as almost everyone are predicting they will, Stones will be spearheading attacks from the back.

English David Luiz? Minus the free kicks, acrobatics and unpredictability, yes.

Eric Bailly would be a reasonable selection. He’s likely to be the first defender on the team sheet for Mourinho, but he’s also got injury question marks. And it would be even more foolish to grab a central defender from Arsenal or Liverpool, so apologies to Laurent Koscielny and Joel Matip. Virgil Van Dijk’s future is up in the air, making him too risky a choice as well.

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