BBC’s McNulty backs Everton keeper Jordan Pickford over Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsdale for England
Everton keeper Jordan Pickford is the “undisputed” England number one despite pressure from Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsdale, says BBC reporter Phil McNulty.
The Toffees star was a stand-out performer at Wembley as the Three Lions came back from a goal down to beat Switzerland in a friendly last night (26 March).
With the club in a relegation battle and Arsenal putting together an impressive run of Premier League results, there have been increasing calls for the Gunners man to take the gloves.
But in his match report McNulty dismissed the challenge, writing: “The emergence of Aaron Ramsdale at Arsenal has placed renewed pressure on Pickford to keep performing.
“The bottom line is Pickford remains [Gareth] Southgate’s undisputed pick and deservedly so, even if the Everton keeper’s detractors continue to look for faults in his game.
“Under the radar, he has been consistent in a desperately mediocre Everton side since the second half of last season.
“And here again… Pickford showed exactly why Southgate is unmoved by questions about his goalkeeper.”
Loyal
The former Sunderland stopper has been in goal throughout England’s most successful period in recent memory.
Until he does anything to prove otherwise on the international stage, there is no reason for Southgate to change.
The Three Lions manager has proven to be very loyal to players who have done well for him, and this is no different.
Pickford has a reputation for chaos that stems entirely from what happens in an Everton jersey, which probably says as much about the state of the club as it does him.
High-profile incidents against Liverpool, such as the Divock Origi winner or Virgil van Dijk’s injury haven’t helped him in that regard.
But the comparative calm authority he exhibits for his country is a world apart.
He hasn’t even been that bad for Everton, but such is the state of the defence in front of him of late, he is mostly noticed for picking the ball out of his net.
So Frank Lampard will hope to see more of what he produced at Wembley when he returns to Merseyside.
In other Everton news, there’s trouble brewing after another international performer spoke about his situation.
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