Stones tells Everton he wants to join Man City

England defender John Stones has informed Everton of his desire to leave the club and join Manchester City, according to reports.

ESPN FC claims that Stones has met with the Everton hierarchy and made clear his wish to leave the club, with Manchester City thought to be his preferred destination.

The 22-year-old defender is thought to be keen to work under new City boss Pep Guardiola who has joined the club after leaving Bayern Munich at the end of last season.

Everton will demand a fee in excess of £50 million for the former Barnsley youngster, which would set a record for both the most ever paid for a defender -- eclipsing David Luiz's move from Chelsea to Paris Saint Germain -- and the most expensive Englishman ever -- beating the £49 million City paid to sign Raheem Sterling from Liverpool last summer.

Stones was the subject of criticism for his performances last season, with the defender showing himself to be far from the finished product. But there is no doubting the young centre-back's talent and potential.

Traditionally, Guardiola likes to have a ball-playing centre-half at the heart of his defence, with Gerard Piqué performing that role for his FC Barcelona team, and Jerome Boateng doing that job for Bayern.

Stones would fit that profile, and the Catalan tactician would back himself to be able to iron out the deficiencies in the Everton player's game.