World Cup

Jordan Pickford unsure of World Cup role

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 03 June 2018

England and Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford admits that he is still not sure whether he will be chosen as the team's number one for the upcoming World Cup.

England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford has insisted that he is still unsure whether he will be the team's number one goalkeeper for the upcoming World Cup in Russia.

Manager Gareth Southgate dropped the biggest hint yet that Pickford would be given the gloves for the tournament when the Everton shot-stopper played the full 90 minutes of their opening warm-up game against Nigeria on Saturday.

The 24-year-old faces competition from Jack Butland and Nick Pope, though, and Southgate has so far refused to reveal publicly or privately who will get the nod for the tournament opener against Tunisia on June 18.

"Nothing's been confirmed yet. I've just to keep putting in performances like I did and keep working hard in training," Pickford told reporters.

"That's all I've done throughout my career. Getting the nod [against Nigeria] was brilliant - there's another cap ticked off and another solid performance. That's three good performances for the team.

"Nothing's been said. We've got three days' training before the [Costa Rica] game so I've just got to train hard and work hard off the pitch and hopefully I'll get the nod again. I've worked with the manager before at Under-21 level so maybe he will tell us in advance, but when that will be I don't know."

The goal Pickford conceded during England's 2-1 win over Nigeria was his first in three appearances for his country.