With veteran Joe Hart being kept out of the West Ham United team, the Everton stopper may be Southgate’s choice when it comes to Russia this summer.
Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, 23, is making a fine claim for the England number 1 shirt this season, as he continues to impress at Goodison Park.
The Toffees have experienced a major turnaround under Sam Allardyce since Ronald Koeman’s departure and have clawed their way up the table into ninth place, having dropped as low as 18th earlier in the season.
With 75-capped Joe Hart currently being kept out of the West Ham United team and Fraser Forster part of a severely under-performing Southampton side, if the England squad was picked now, Pickford would surely be the first choice goalkeeper.
However, with only a single cap to his name, and no major tournament experience, Southgate may have reservations about throwing the youngster into the fray.
Should Hart find his way back into David Moyes’ starting XI and regain any sort of form, the England manager may well opt for the 30-year-old’s experience. However, that is looking unlikely and, with only 11 games left in the Premier League, the former Manchester City man is running out of time.
Pickford’s consistency at Everton has not gone unnoticed by the fans, some of whom have taken to Twitter, mostly to voice their support for the former Sunderland man, suggesting it would be foolish to select anyone other than him to start for England in Russia this summer.
Of course, there are still a few months to go before the highly anticipated World Cup but, with Everton looking back to their best and Pickford right at the heart of that, it may be time for the nation to bid farewell to the long-serving Hart and put faith in the 23-year-old who could, in theory, go on to start for the next decade.
Here is a short round up of the some of the England fans’ view on the ‘keeper situation.
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