As England prepare for their World Cup quarter-final against Norway, the pile-on of Jordan Pickford continues with some in the media.
The game against Mexico last time out showed the Everton goalkeeper at his very best as he helped to secure victory at the Azteca.
Pickford was criticised for his performances in the group stage games for the Three Lions, despite Thomas Tuchel’s side topping their group.
Saturday’s game is going to see Pickford come up against a Premier League rival of his in Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
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England have a huge opportunity to make it through to the final four of this summer’s World Cup, and Pickford is likely going to need to play a key role on Saturday.
However, Rio Ferdinand’s latest comments on Pickford are not what is needed ahead of another huge game for the Three Lions.
What Rio Ferdinand said about Jordan Pickford ahead of Norway vs England
Pickford’s record against Haaland is not great, with the Norway international having scored seven goals in his six games against the Blues.
However, this time around, Pickford will be playing for the favourites as England will be expected to progress beyond Norway.
Despite the nation still riding high after the victory over Mexico, Ferdinand has tried his best to dampen spirits.
“Have you seen the stats that he’s [Haaland] got? Seven goals in the last ten shots against Pickford,” he said on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.
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“That will be in Pickford’s mind. Pickford’s head hits the pillow tonight and Pickford will be thinking of that stat.”
England’s criticism of Pickford simply has to stop
Joe Hart was absolutely stunned by Pickford’s performance against Mexico.
The former Manchester City goalkeeper has been a firm supporter of Pickford throughout this tournament.
Although no player should be free of criticism, it seems as if Ferdinand’s comments are unnecessary.
Around 24 hours out from the game on Saturday, England supporters should be getting behind their players.
Instead, the likes of Ferdinand are pointing out the negatives.
Everyone knows just how big of a challenge it is going to be against Haaland having seen him score seven times in the World Cup so far.
However, the focus has shifted away from Pickford’s incredible performance at the Azteca and on to his record for Everton against a much more dominant Man City side.
Andy Burnham has shared his support for Pickford, as all Evertonians have backed their goalkeeper throughout the tournament.
It just feels incredibly unnecessary to highlight such negatives on the back of such a positive performance from Pickford.
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