The former Everton star has been inspirational this season, rediscovering his very best form and winning a place in the England squad as a result.
But the City boss says it is nothing he has done – Stones has done it all himself.
“He deserved it and only he has done it,” said Pep.
CITY+ | WATCH EXCLUSIVE DOCUMENTARIES AND FEATURES
“I am delighted, happy and proud of him. Like Gareth said, people say it because of the managers - in this situation, our influence is zero.
“To play positive depends exclusively on them. When they play well, they deserve exclusively the credit themselves.
“In the end the results are there. Congratulations. Hopefully he can play good for England and come back stronger for the last part of the season.”
The Catalan was also asked whether he would prefer his players not to talk about the possibility of winning trophies and instead do any talking on the pitch.
Oleksandr Zinchenko was asked if City could triumph in the four competitions the Club is still in this season and he responded positively.
But the boss prefers a lower key outlook to the remaining months of the campaign.
“In this period of Covid, I don’t talk with the players,” said Pep.
“We train and I talk before the game. Dreams are dreams. They can think OK, but my advice is don’t think about it.
“It’s Everton next. If they want to think about four trophies, they have to win tomorrow.
“And after that they can talk about four trophies again.
“This is all I am concerned with. I realised playing Everton is always tough and how different it is each time.
“We won the last game against them because Bernardo and Riyad did incredible actions.
“Hopefully tomorrow we can find the right resources to beat them again.”
The official Man City app brings you all the latest City news and video combined with a matchday centre and Cityzens experience together in one place.
Download now for the best online City experience.
