Ian Wright: Pickford won’t be England No. 1 for long amid Ramsdale form
Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford will not be England’s first-choice for long amid Aaron Ramsdale’s fine form, according to Ian Wright.
The Arsenal soht-stopper has been impressive since becoming Mikel Arteta’s No. 1, and his performance during his side’s 2-0 win over Leicester City at the weekend has been earning rave reviews.
Everton are struggling at the moment, with Pickford shipping eight goals in his last three Premier League games.
With Ramsdale shining, there are calls for Gareth Southgate to make him Three Lions’ first-choice, and Wright reckons that could happen sooner rather than later.
The former striker said on the latest episode of Wrighty’s House: “With that distribution and making those saves, there is no way Jordan Pickford keeps him out for too much longer.”
“No way. He’s England number one.”
Selection headache
While Pickford always does well for England, there is no denying that Southgate could have a selection headache right now.
The Everton ace has just two clean sheets in nine league games this term, while his Arsenal counterpart has kept four clean sheets in seven appearances.
It is hard to ignore those numbers despite the dismal state of the Toffees defence.
One of Pickford’s strengths is his ball-playing abilities, but Ramsdale is looking better than him in that aspect right now.
He completed a lot of passes to some of his teammates in midfield and the opponent’s half, and that will have intrigued Southgate.
Both goalkeepers will definitely be pushing one another ahead of the World Cup, and the Everton man cannot afford to make any errors right now and going forward.
All of his kicks and saves will be scrutinised henceforth given Ramsdale’s form, and he simply has to impress.
In other Everton news, a Toffees ace is set to be assessed ahead of Tottenham clash after major Monday blow.
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