Thomas Tuchel leaves Jordan Pickford in no doubt over star's England role
Jordan Pickford is expected to start for England against Andorra as the Three Lions No1 looks to cement his spot despite competition from James Trafford and Dean Henderson
Jordan Pickford has been given a ringing endorsement of his status as England's No1.
England boss Thomas Tuchel will probably expect Pickford to have one of his quieter nights against World Cup minnows Andorra. But there has been a lingering doubt over Pickford ever since Tuchel took charge because new competition is emerging and also it is the first time England have had a new permanent manager since 2016.
Burnley 's James Trafford is seen as a big prospect for the future while Crystal Palace 's Dean Henderson showed his potential when his club won the FA Cup and it is clear they are ready to challenge in the long term. Tuchel sounded out Southampton keeper Aaron Ramsdale after taking charge and the signs pointed to Pickford facing the biggest fight on his hands since Gareth Southgate made his first choice ahead of the 2018 World Cup.
But Pickford, 31, who has won 75 caps, got a glowing reference from Tuchel when the German was asked to survey England's goalkeeping options. While Tuchel expects the likes of Trafford and Henderson to provide more competition in the future, Pickford's position looks assured for now.
Tuchel said: 'Jordan has been in goal for a long, long time, he earned his place with consistent performances at a high level in international football. It will always be a fight for every position, there is no exception for the goalkeepers. At the moment Jordan is in a good place mentally and performance-wise.
'It helped him to stabilise himself at Everton with the change of manager. With David Moyes he became very, very stable and also emotionally stable and we're very happy with that at the moment.'
Tuchel did point towards Trafford and Henderson having the ability to challenge Pickford in the long term but also suggested reasons why they still have work to do and new competition has pushed the Everton keeper this season. Trafford could move this summer with Newcastle keen while Palace hope to be in Europe after winning the FA Cup and that would boost Henderson. Ramsdale is wanted by West Ham among others after Southampton were relegated.
Tuchel said: 'All our goalkeepers are not involved in European football, they're not used to European football which would be ideal. It's not a problem, Jordan behaves and trains at the highest level and we're very, very happy with him. He's doing everything at the moment to keep his place because he feels that Dean stepped up and found another level, another gear.
'Dean got a big title with his club and was a key figure in the campaign so that helped him a lot for his confidence. He also found a title and a decisive role at Crystal Palace. He got an important and vital title for his club and he was a big figure in this campaign. This helped his confidence a lot.
'Then we have the very young James Trafford who played a fantastic, record-breaking campaign with Burnley and got clean sheets. Hopefully he can prove himself next season in the Premier League and then the race is on.
'James (Trafford) had a long, long break after his fantastic season with Burnley. He hasn't been on the pitch for four weeks, he finished the season the earliest. That's a little bit of a disadvantage for him, it's not his fault but he is pushing strongly. That's what we expect from him and he is at the moment a competitor for Dean Henderson and Jordan Pickford."
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