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Gareth Southgate shares Jordan Pickford update after Everton points deduction news
Gareth Southgate has shared an update on Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford after news broke that the Toffees had received a 10-point deduction.
Sean Dyche’s side were punished by an independent commission for breaching the Premier League’s financial fair play rules, with the Toffees receiving a 10-point deduction on Friday (17 November) to see them fall to 19th in the league.
Only hours after, Pickford started England’s clash with Malta in Euro 2024 qualifying and kept a clean sheet for the Three Lions and Southgate was quick to praise his goalkeeper for how he has dealt with difficult situations in the past at Goodison Park.
As quoted by the Daily Mail (19 November) he said: “I haven’t spoken to Jordan about it. The rest at the minute is speculative, so we’ll just have to see as and when anything happens.
“He has coped really well with a couple of really difficult seasons at Everton, where they’ve been in the lower reaches of the league. So, if the ultimate decision is as has been said – I am guessing there will be some sort of appeal – then it’s a scenario he’s been through and actually been a really important player for.”
Important player
Pickford is by no means a player who shrinks when the occasion needs him, over the course of his career both at club and international level he has stood up to be counted whenever he’s called upon to rescue England or the Toffees.
This situation is unlikely to be different, as Everton are going to need all their players to put in excellent performances to be able to pull Dyche’s side away from the relegation zone after this huge points deduction landed this week.
Pickford has managed to continue to put in excellent performances between the posts at Goodison Park during the last couple of seasons when the Toffees have been languishing towards the bottom of the Premier League table. His displays have helped keep Everton in the top flight and the same will be true this season.
Although Malta didn’t provide a particularly difficult test for Southgate’s side, Pickford took to the field at Wembley and kept a clean sheet only hours after the points deduction news. He can put that to the back of his mind and step up for his country and he’ll do the same for the Toffees.
In other Everton news, Ian Wright has sent Dele Alli a two-word message after the Toffees midfielder’s latest update