Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford has been speaking about his spot as England’s number one.
Pickford, despite his ups and downs for Everton, has remained a constant in England’s side under Gareth Southgate.
He played a key role at the 2018 World Cup that saw England finally come out on top in a shootout.
Pickford then conceded just two goals during the entirety of Euro 2020 and was impressive in the shootout vs Italy, even if the Three Lions did go on to lose that game.
Now, Pickford has been speaking about how competition for his England place is helping him push boundaries.
In particular, he mentioned Arsenal stopper Aaron Ramsdale, who has had an excellent 2021/22 with Arsenal and, for the most part, had a better club campaign than Pickford.
“There are always people trying to chase you and get that spot off you so it’s about keeping pushing boundaries”, he told the Daily Mail.
“I think it’s better for me when Rammers is pushing because that’s pushing me to go even further to get even better.
“I feel I’ve been pushed all the time with Popey [Nick Pope], Deano [Henderson], Rammers, Sam [Johnstone].
“I appreciate the manager’s loyalty. I’ve known him since the Under 21s and I was there when he got the job with the seniors so yes he’s stuck by me.”
Despite Ramsdale’s heroics, though, Pickford does look set to remain England’s no.1 for the time being and will likely play a key part in their UEFA Nations League campaign that kicks off in June.
Southgate’s side will take on Hungary, Germany, Italy and then Hungary a second time between June 4th and June 14th.
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