Overview

• Manchester City bolstered their defence by signing Abdukodir Khusanov, Vitor Reis and Juma Bah in January, reducing Stones’s first-team chances.
• Recurring hip and hamstring injuries since February have sidelined Stones and undermined his England squad prospects for the World Cup.
• With one year left on a £250,000-a-week contract, Stones would likely have to accept a pay cut to rejoin Everton.
• A return to Merseyside would reunite Stones with David Moyes, who first signed him from Barnsley in 2013.
• City would seek to include Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite in the proposed swap as they target defensive reinforcements.