Gareth Southgate has remained full of praise for Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford when discussing his selection in the England squad in his press conference.
The goalkeeper has come under fire in recent weeks after a string of questionable performance saw Carlo Ancelotti drop him in favour of new-signing Robin Olsen.
However, Southgate hasn’t lost faith in the goalie, claiming that he has always been excellent for England and that this was an easy decision to make.
“When people say I have been loyal to him, he has deserved that,” said Southgate. “His performances for us have been excellent so that has not been a difficult decision for me.
“We have some competition for places but I would have to say that there is nobody who I think is challenging seriously at the moment to push him out of that position.
“In terms of how his club are looking after him, he has got a hugely experienced manager there who has won everything in the game. He is in a very good place.”
As poor as Pickford has been lately, Southgate is right here.
Who else is he going to call-up? Tom Heaton remains injured, Aaron Ramsdale is struggling at Sheffield United, while Jack Butland and Joe Hart aren’t first-choice at either of their clubs.
Pickford does deserve to be in the England squad by virtue of a lack of depth, and Southgate has done the right thing by praising him here.
If he’d come out and admitted he hasn’t been at his best lately that could have seriously damaged his confidence, and you never want that for any player.
Of course, the real decision that the England manager has to make is whether or not Pickford remains as his number one, and it remains to be seen what he will do in the upcoming fixtures.
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