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John Stones reacts to England’s defeat and admits it ‘wasn’t an easy day’ for Greece as players mourn George Baldock
John Stones, standing in as England captain, expressed his deep disappointment following England’s 2-1 defeat to Greece in a dramatic match on Thursday evening.
England had seemingly salvaged a draw with Jude Bellingham’s late equalizer, only for Vangelis Pavlidis to score the winning goal for Greece in injury time, leaving England stunned.
The match held special significance for Greece, as they were playing in honor of their teammate George Baldock, who tragically passed away the day before.
Stones acknowledged the emotional weight that Greece carried into the game, making their victory even more poignant.
Despite the defeat, he expressed his respect for Greece’s resilience and determination during such a difficult time, but admitted that the loss left him and his England teammates “absolutely gutted.”
Stones said: “On a personal note, absolutely gutted.
“First time with the armband, and a result like this. It’s hard to put into words to be honest after every emotion yesterday, today we prepared how we normally do and it didn’t come off so it’s just a shame it was on a night like this.
“We have got to give credit to them, from the start they put us right under pressure. We found it difficult to come out from the back, and play our normal football to break the lines. They were very compact so it was disappointing from us.”
He added: “For everyone in the dressing room and The FA, condolences to his family.
“A few of the boys were close to him. We knew it wasn’t an easy day for them. (England reserve goalkeeper) Dean Henderson was close to him, it wasn’t easy for him with that news.”