David James sends warning to ‘tremendous’ Everton star over international spot
David James has delivered a warning to Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford over his England spot next season.
The Toffees stopper has once again endured a Premier League season full of mistakes, although there is little competition at Goodison Park.
The situation in the England set-up is much different though. Gareth Southgate has kept faith in Pickford, but both Nick Pope and Dean Henderson are breathing down his neck.
James is a big fan of Pickford but admitted that he needs to bring more consistency to his game next season.
“I look at Pickford and there’s tremendous qualities he’s got,” he told the Liverpool Echo. “I think being the number one is very, very difficult.”
“For one, people want to shoot you down, of course, because that’s the nature of the game. And secondly, to actually be at your best is difficult and to maintain that standard in any sporting context your performances are going to ebb and flow.
“There will be a need for him to be performing more often than dare I say one of the top sides where if anything you’re more in line with your England performances, where you’re called upon from time to time rather than sort of regular.”
Jamie Carragher summed up Pickford’s season perfectly after the 3-1 defeat against Bournemouth on the final day of the last campaign.
“Talk about summing Everton’s season up, I think the goalkeeper sums his own season up with that,” he said. “Embarrassing effort to try and keep it out.”
The England set-up has been without quality keepers for years now, and finally, Pickford can prove his worth at international level, and that could benefit his game in the Premier League.
In other Everton news, this report has shared the Toffees’ stance on Jonjoe Kenny after his successful Schalke spell