Sean Dyche in ‘question marks’ admission over Everton ace Jordan Pickford
Jordan Pickford demonstrated “what a top keeper he is” despite the “question marks” surrounding him, according to his Everton boss Sean Dyche.
Pickford entered the international break on a personal high, as he made some fine stops at Bramall Lane to ensure the Toffees picked up their first point of the season.
The 29-year-old, who is now away on international duty with England, made a fantastic double save in stoppage time to keep the score at 2-2 and prevent Dyche’s side from starting the Premier League season with four straight defeats. And his manager has praised him for rising above the critics.
“I think like everyone he had some question marks recently because the team were conceding big moments but I think it shows again what a top keeper he is,” Dyche said, in quotes reported by the Liverpool Echo (6 September).
“I thought his all-round performance was very good. He was very unlucky with their second [which struck the post then went in via his back] quite obviously. And he makes two fantastic saves at the end when it is really important to do so.”
Vital
It is safe to assume that without the contributions of the England number one over the past few seasons, Everton would be in the Championship right now. He has come up with some top saves during the club’s recent relegation dogfights and his passionate personality is infectious.
While his saves away at Sheffield United won’t seem particularly important now, come the end of the season, supporters could be looking back at the double stop as a moment that was crucial to their survival in England’s top flight. He showed great reactions to get back up after tipping an initial attempt from Oli McBurnie onto the crossbar and get himself in the way of the striker’s second shot.
Pickford was linked with a move away from Goodison Park in the summer, however, he has already shown in moments throughout the current campaign that keeping hold of him might have been the best business the club did.
In other Everton news, the club are close to agreeing an exit for a star forward.