Pique would have Stones in his world dream team

Wouldn't actually begrudge him going to Barca in a few seasons for the appropriate fee.

Would depress me to see him play for a domestic rival whatever the price, though. Hopefully we're past that.

RM: John, Barcelona put in a phenomenal bid.
JS: WAHOOOOO!

Well done to all concerned with sending Chelsea packing. Hopefully we can somehow kick on so as he can meet all his goals playing for us, but if not a massive move to Spain would cushion the blow.

My gut feeling is the end of the season. To that end you have to hope he establishes himself in the England team and has a good Euro tournament. You will then be talking an auction with the best sides in Europe and a fee in the region of £40-50m. You could do a lot of squad improvement with that type of money.

In the mean time enjoy him whilst he is here.

I can see him going as well. He’s better than Bartra and Mascherano isn’t even a natural centre-back!!

Why is my heart in my mouth when the opposition cross the ball into our goalmouth? Surely that’s because the central defenders are not dependable to deal with them.

Okay, Howard's dodgy on crosses also, but he doesn’t get a lot of help though, does he? I’m thinking more when Jags is playing, Mori might be an improvement but where’s Stones?

Yes, John will probably become a great player in time but I think talking him up too much too soon is jumping the gun, à la Ross.

Last season he was bullying seasoned brick-shithouse pros; at the moment, he is getting pushed around by no-marks.

He will improve again, but it’s worrying at the moment.

This is typified by our full backs. Seamus Coleman is a shadow of the player he became both going forward and defensively. These days, defensively he is poor. How is it possible to make Seamus Coleman this bad? He also looks to be playing like he doesn’t believe in the manager or what he’s being asked to do. Baines has gone backwards defensively also, providing way too much space and not stopping crosses. There is a lack of discipline and focus on the basics/dirty work.

For me, Jags is a very good centre back, not top notch but a very good one; England squad player was/is his level. Still very quick at 33 and after a couple of knee injuries.

Stones is going to make mistakes due to his age, but he is clearly very, very talented. There’s no way we are keeping him long term and part of me thinks is would be better to take the money, develop other parts of the team and not have to suffer his growing pains. I also think from the standpoint of his development he would be much better off away from Martinez, although as I don't particularly rate him I would say that.

Funes Mori definitely looks a player, although how long he will look one after repeated exposure to Roberto's culture of disorganisation and lack of responsibility taking is anyone's guess.

And this is the point: The players we’ve got, there’s no way we should be this poor at the back. We are consistently unable to defend crosses, don’t stop them, and the marking, organisation and communication is poor. I do feel sorry for them sometimes, as they can be left very exposed.

Frequently we give the ball away and teams are straight into the back 4, on the break. We just don’t work on the shape and organisation enough. We started the season looking more solid and organised but that started going fairly quickly, you could see it unravelling.

This culture of just focus on what you're good at with no comebacks is hurting some of the players. It's hurting Baines, Coleman and Barkley. Ross Barkley wants to be a box-to-box midfielder in time, playing deeper. How can he possibly be that when he is as bad off the ball as he is at the moment, with no hint that he is being asked to develop that side of his game? Don’t worry about that, just focus on going forward...

Ross is a work in progress but only geniuses get to play the Number 10 with no defensive responsibility, and Ross isn’t one. Martinez is not helping him, or the team, by saying just go and play, in my opinion.

I am rubbing my hands in glee (let alone Bill Kenwright)! £50-60 million easy! Think of what a club like Everton could do with that kind of money.

At times in the hurly burly safety first gung ho nature of the English Premier League it’s very hard to be greatly successful trying to play the ball out of defence when you are given so little time on the ball.

Stones’s elegance would shine through in the more football orientated La Liga with the pace being better suited to ball playing central defenders.

I’d much rather Stones go to a proper famous big club like Barcelona than rich rent boy Johnny Come Lately Chelsea...

Chelsea or Barcelona??

It’s hardly a contest really is it?

It really is a pleasure watching a kid make the game look so easy though, and some of his performances before his injury really were magnificent for one so young. Hopefully he gets back to that level soon.

I can also understand why Piquet picked him in this team, because after playing in England when he was a kid himself, he obviously knows how difficult it can be for young defenders, playing in the hurley, burley Premier League.

Maybe we should analyse ourselves first before constantly criticising the likes of Ross, Lukaku, Stones etc.... Just a thought.

I mean I know a diversity of opinion is a good thing but really!

Tony you say he is being bullied. We’ll certainly Deeney, Pelle, Costa, Gomis, Kane, Ings and Carroll never bullied him because he dominated every single one of them. Who exactly has bullied him?

Yes he had a couple of average games and sure he will develop. But he is already as good a defender as Smalling and Cahill after just over a season of first team football. And as a ball playing centre half he is at a level they will only ever dream about.

It’s easy to hype young players but, in Stones's case, he will live up to it.

I went to West Ham on Saturday; Stones gave a magnificent performance. Man of the Match by a country mile.

The big geordie lad had more tussles with Barry and especially Funes Mori but, truth be told, he only looked half-fit. Sakho was meant to start but had to pull out.

Even so, to see Stones moving more like his old self was the big plus of the day for me. Can’t wait to see him in the games coming up.

Oh yes – there was another of their players that we were interested in as well a young forward forget his name. Those and some cash seem better than Chelski!!