Everton: Daily Mail journo slams Gary Neville on ‘nonsense’ Jordan Pickford England verdict
Brian Viner has hit out at Gary Neville after the former Manchester United defender suggested that Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford raises his game for England matches.
The 30-year-old has experienced his fair share of criticism since arriving at Goodison Park in 2017 but has always been a mainstay in the Toffees starting XI, seriously impressing this season.
Viner was speaking about the wider media coverage of Pickford, which he thinks is generally unfair given how good he has been for England.
He gave props to Neville for acknowledging that Pickford performs well for the Three Lions but took umbrage with one particular viewpoint.
Writing for Daily Mail on Wednesday (20 March), Viner said: “Gary Neville at least acknowledges he is worth his international place. But he damns with faint praise, suggesting that Everton man habitually ‘raises his game’ for England.
“This, too, is absolute nonsense. Any Evertonian who watches Pickford most weeks knows that both last season and the one before he pretty much single-handledly steered the club clear of relegation.”
How important is Jordan Pickford to Everton?
Only bettered by Arsenal’s David Raya for the number of Premier League clean sheets this season, there is no understating how vital Pickford is to Everton’s hopes of survival.
Despite playing for a struggling Toffees side, currently sitting four points above Nottingham Forest in the relegation zone, Pickford continues to put on top performances each week, with a superb defence in front of him too.
Jarrad Branthwaite and James Tarkowski have built a formidable defensive partnership at Goodison Park, with only Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City conceding fewer goals than Sean Dyche’s side.
However, with the lack of goals from Dyche’s attacking players, with only Sheffield United scoring fewer goals, Everton are very much at risk of relegation to the Championship for the third successive season.
Of course, Forest’s recent points deduction will emerge as a huge boost for the Toffees but Dyche must ensure that his team pick up some valuable wins during the run-in to the end of the season.
In other Everton news, Moshiri was left without £200million paperwork to sign as a PSR blunder has emerged.
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