Jordan Pickford offers Everton verdict as Toffees have ‘turned a corner’ this season
Jordan Pickford believes that Everton have “turned a corner” this season in terms of their performances, despite their lowly league position at the start of the campaign.
The Toffees stopper has been named the player of the season in the last two campaigns at Goodison Park and played a crucial role in earning Sean Dyche’s side their first point of the season with an excellent double save in their 2-2 draw with Sheffield United.
Pickford has suggested while on international duty that he is currently in the form of his life, while also expressing his belief that both he and the rest of the side have made huge improvements under Dyche, even if the results haven’t been as positive.
In quotes reported by the Daily Mirror (10 September) he said: “We have turned the corner. Apart from the Aston Villa game (beaten 4-0), the other three fixtures were very close and we were in control of the Sheffield United game.
“We have only one point on the board but we can build on it.”
Time to build
Nobody is doubting the fact this Everton side looks like a more capable and battling outfit than the one that lined up at this stage of last season under Frank Lampard, they have been unlucky not to have taken more points and sit higher up the Premier League table.
But football is a results business and the Toffees need to start winning more games, having been in control as Pickford put it at Bramall Lane, they should never have allowed Paul Heckingbottom’s side back into the game, especially against a side who are likely to be in and around the relegation zone.
Everton’s opening run of fixtures has been fairly mild as well, so far they have yet to play any of the “big six” or either Brighton or Newcastle, so they would have viewed the opening four games as matches where they could have picked up some important points.
On an individual basis, Dyche and Everton are very lucky to have Pickford who has been in inspired form so far this season and at the end of the last campaign. To have tied him down to a new long-term contract was an incredibly smart piece of business.
England’s number one maintaining this level of superb form will go a long way to helping the Toffees continue to turn that corner under Dyche.
In other Everton news, Andy Gray has slammed the suggestion that Graham Potter should replace Dyche