Jordan Pickford has encountered numerous challenges since debuting for England at the under-16 level back in 2009. Despite facing the humiliation of being the first goalkeeper to concede a goal from open play in a Fifa World Cup match against Canada during the under-17 tournament in Mexico two years later, the 32-year-old has since redeemed himself.
With a 2-0 win over Panama last Saturday, Pickford achieved his 29th consecutive appearance in a major tournament, helping Thomas Tuchel’s squad secure the top position in Group L. This victory sets the stage for a crucial match against the Democratic Republic of Congo in Atlanta on Wednesday. The Everton goalkeeper understands that the stakes are about to rise significantly.
“It ramps up now, doesn’t it?” he remarked following his 46th clean sheet, marking the sixth at the World Cup in his 87 caps. “It’s a proper phase of football. One game at a time. There are lads who have won Champions Leagues, lads who have been in youth tournaments with England. Everyone knows the pressure of it and I think that is where you will see us thrive.”
Pickford made the switch to Everton from Sunderland during England’s journey to the semi-finals of the Under-21 European Championships in Poland in 2017, where they fell to Germany in a penalty shootout. Aside from six matches in a Europa League campaign during his inaugural season at Goodison Park, his experience outside domestic football has primarily come from international play. While he has shown signs of uncertainty in England’s initial matches, he was fortunate to avoid punishment for charging out of his penalty area and colliding with Ghana’s substitute Prince Kwabena Adu. Nevertheless, his record with the senior squad remains intact.
Dean Henderson has been pressing hard for a starting position after an impressive season at Crystal Palace, but there was never any doubt about who would occupy the No. 1 role for Tuchel in this World Cup. Pickford is among the last of the Gareth Southgate era still featuring in the starting lineup, and his experience in major tournaments could prove invaluable for England as they prepare for the knockout stages.
“We’ve got our goal. You work on the training pitch, you keep that enjoyment and keep that fun environment. But once you’re training you’re working, you take the messages in and for me that’s the glue really. Because you want to be enjoying it but you don’t want to be solely focused on too much tomorrow, thinking about the next game. “You want to have that recovery environment but when we’re off the pitch it’s like our downtime and [we can] relax and have fun between us. And that’s what we do. That’s what I feel we’ve got right since I got here in 2018.” he stated when asked about their approach for the coming days. “We’ve got our goal. You work on the training pitch, you keep that enjoyment and keep that fun environment. But once you’re training you’re working, you take the messages in and for me that’s the glue really. Because you want to be enjoying it but you don’t want to be solely focused on too much tomorrow, thinking about the next game.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a risk,”
There is a noticeable shift in England’s defensive strategy under Tuchel compared to Southgate, particularly highlighted during the match against Panama when they nearly faced setbacks. The team has made a deliberate choice to take more risks by advancing Nico O’Reilly high up the pitch from left back, often leaving defenders in one-on-one situations. However, Pickford believes this approach could enhance their attacking capabilities.
“It’s tactical. We’re playing front-foot football. Hopefully everyone at home is enjoying it. We’re enjoying it. There are a lot of positives out of it because we want to get the ball high up and suffocate teams. That is what we’ll do. There will be the odd time when they’ll make one or two passes and you’ve got to be on your A game. It’s about recovery. You’ve seen a lot of recovery runs. There are a lot of lads putting a lot of effort in. Effort into last-ditch tackles. And then it comes down to me when I need to make a save as well.” he explained. “I’ve been taking a few. You’ve got to be prepared. We have so many good penalty takers so that’s put me down the pecking order. It’s my job to make the saves and in tournaments, time and time before, I’ve always come up with a save in a shootout for England and I’ll hopefully continue that. We believe in each other – they have confidence I can save a penalty and I have confidence they can score them. But we want to be winning the game, we don’t want to go to penalties.”
Pickford’s remarkable performances during the intense penalty shootout against Colombia in the last 16 of the 2018 World Cup have become legendary in England, especially given the team’s historical struggles in such situations. He also saved a penalty from Manuel Akanji in the Euro 2024 shootout victory over Switzerland and scored one himself against the same nation in a Nations League third-place playoff in 2019. He has been practicing again in preparation for any potential shootouts.
“I’ve been taking a few. You’ve got to be prepared. We have so many good penalty takers so that’s put me down the pecking order. It’s my job to make the saves and in tournaments, time and time before, I’ve always come up with a save in a shootout for England and I’ll hopefully continue that. We believe in each other – they have confidence I can save a penalty and I have confidence they can score them. But we want to be winning the game, we don’t want to go to penalties.”
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