Everton star Jordan Pickford set to return to England starting lineup v Italy – Sky Sports
Everton star Jordan Pickford is set to be recalled to the England starting lineup for the Euro 2024 qualifier with Italy at Wembley, according to Sky Sports.
Gareth Southgate has backed Pickford as his long-term number one over the years but Crystal Palace ace Sam Johnstone got the nod between the sticks in the 1-0 win over Australia last week.
But ahead of the big game with Italy on Tuesday night (17 October), Pickford is set to be recalled to the team as the manager reverts to his most trusted team.
“Jordan Pickford will return in goal,” they wrote. “Kyle Walker will play at right-back. Harry Maguire will be at centre-back.
“Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice will anchor the central midfield. Harry Kane will return as captain and lead the line up front.”
John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kalvin Phillips, Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden are expected to make up the rest of the starting lineup.
Deserved
The England goalkeeper department has never been as stacked as it is right now with top options across the board competing to be the main man.
But Southgate is well known for his loyalty to those who he has picked for a long time, and Pickford has earned that spot with his performances at the 2018 World Cup, Euro 2020 and the most recent World Cup in Qatar.
So while Aaron Ramsdale had been the number one at a title challenging team until recent weeks, and Johnstone has been flying for Palace as a regular in a stable Premier League team, Pickford has never let him down and that means there is no reason to drop him just because Everton have been struggling.
Pickford is the man at England and after the Euro 2024 tournament is done that could change with Southgate’s future up in the air and a new cycle beginning, but for now he deserves the spot and it’s good to see him continuing to be trusted.
In other Everton news, Sky Sports pundit issues five-word response to recent comments from Toffees star.