Harry Kane led a team meeting ahead of England’s clash with Senegal to ensure they do not become the latest giant upset at the 2022 World Cup.
Gareth Southgate was also involved in setting up the discussion, which centred on focusing the Three Lions players’ minds on not letting this opportunity slip by.
Such is the level of standards expected around England’s Al Wakrah training base, the squad has even been told to make sure that they put their socks the right way for the kit men.
The idea is to ensure complacency does not slip into the camp as England go into the match with Senegal as favourites.
On Friday, John Stones explained the meeting held at the team hotel.
“The manager, Harry, a few of the boys spoke up,” Stones told reporters in Qatar. “We spoke briefly in our meeting this morning as a team about not letting any standards drop.
“Whether it might be putting your kit the right way for the kit men, putting out socks the right way for the kit men - we get on each other for things like that because we have created those standards.
“Those little things matter and those little things keep you on the right path. So we spoke about what has happened, and spoke about the big nations that have gone - that can’t be ourselves and that goes with all the little things that we have been doing.
“All the good traits we have as a team or players, we can’t let those slide to make sure we stay focused on the job in hand.”
Kane is still searching for a first winners’ medal of his career after finishing a runner-up in three competitions, earning an MBE and landing a host of goalscoring records.
Stones, who now plays with goal scoring sensation Erling Haaland at Manchester City, thinks Kane is every bit as good as his club teammate.
“Definitely [as good], it’s good to say,” he added. “Erling is so new to our league, and Harry has been playing it all his life pretty much. But yeah, players like those two, their quality always shines through within circumstances.
“Does he need a rest? We never think like that, but I know that gets spoken about. I think players that usually are scoring like Harry wants to score, I think you’ve also seen his assist the other day was incredible, those sort of players are a massive team player as well.
“The things that don’t get spoken about, the positioning, the headers from corners that us as defenders appreciate massively, what he brings to the team as a leader, and as a person, as a presence, can outweigh sometimes what happens, or the outcome of things.
“They’re both incredible players and incredible within their own rights as well. Harry has always been incredible for me, incredible to play with, and I’m sure he’ll get on the scoresheet soon.”
Stones himself is a perennial winner having won 11 trophies since joining City from Everton in 2016. He is also an ever-present for Southgate and is the only player to start every game in England’s last three major tournaments, which has seen him reach 62 caps.
Yet he is rarely discussed among the best defenders in the world, even if Stones says he only cares about winning rather than individual recognition.
“I’d love to be regarded as one of the best in world,” he added. “I think that comes with performances and being recognised comes below winning.
“All I want to do is win, I’ve been lucky enough to win 11 titles at City and I’ve enjoyed every minute of that. But every year that feeling just gets stronger and stronger - I want to win more.
“I just want to be a good team player, you can’t win everything by yourself. I want to be in a good defensive unit, a good defender, keeping clean sheets, playing good football and setting attacks up from the back.
“I think to answer your questions that will come with performances and backing that up season after season.”
