John Stones had once seriously considered walking away from football altogether — yet here he is, named in England's squad for the FIFA World Cup and poised to start the tournament opener against Croatia on Wednesday.

The Manchester City defender, 32, revealed last October that a run of injuries had pushed him to the brink of retirement. Speaking to BBC Sport ahead of the tournament, Stones described the episode as "a difficult period" and said he hoped never to reach that point again.

"I really had to dig deep and I am proud of myself for being so mentally strong throughout and coming out the other end of those scenarios," Stones said. "I feel like one of my greatest achievements is to keep coming back from those setbacks, no matter how big they are, and being on top form and playing at such a high level."

A season of limited minutes — but Tuchel believes

Stones managed only 439 minutes of Premier League football last season, appearing in 18 games across all competitions for City. A thigh injury cost him two months, and a subsequent calf problem ruled him out of England's pre-tournament friendlies. He also announced in April that he will leave City this summer.

Despite those concerns, manager Thomas Tuchel chose Stones ahead of Harry Maguire and Levi Colwill, insisting the defender remains a "big part" of his plans and holds "a lot of credit in the bank." Stones partnered Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa in England's most recent friendly and is expected to be preferred over Marc Guehi for the Croatia clash.

Stones says he has been "fit, pretty much all season" and believes that consistency in conditioning helped earn his place in the 26-man squad.

'He saw the kid inside of me'

This will be Stones' sixth major tournament with England, a side he helped reach the semi-finals and quarter-finals of the two previous World Cups. Yet when Tuchel's call came through, the reaction was anything but routine.

"When I got the call off of the manager, I think he saw the kid inside of me, how I reacted — I couldn't really control myself," Stones said. "It was like the first time, just pure joy coming out of me, and I think that is one of the qualities that he loves — how all of this group can be ourselves as players."

England face Croatia on Wednesday at 21:00 BST in their World Cup opener.