Jordan Pickford claims to be in the best shape of his life after playing for Everton and England.
Despite Everton’s disappointing start to the season, Jordan Pickford says he is in “the best shape of my life.”
After helping the Blues avoid relegation in the previous two seasons, the goalie has been unable to prevent his side from gaining only one point from their opening four Premier League games this season.
But it could have been worse: on September 2, the last game before the international break, Everton held on to a 2-2 draw at Sheffield United thanks to a remarkable injury time double save from Oli McBurnie.
England manager Gareth Southgate has stuck by Pickford, who is ready to compete in his fourth major tournament at Euro 2024.
Pickford responded, “I’ve gotten older, got a few more wrinkles!” when asked how he has changed since initially earning a reputation for himself with his efforts at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
“You always mature as a footballer as a goalkeeper; you learn a lot in the game, and you learn more about yourself.”
“In Russia, I was considered a rookie, and in football, you’re never going to have that perfect path, and you’re going to have dips in your career, and that’s how you learn from them.”
“I feel like I’ve worked really hard on it and done everything right, and I think that’s why my performance is consistent and I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life, but I’ll never stop working harder to get even better.”
“I want to keep proving to myself that I can get better and that I can always learn on and off the field.”
Pickford feels England will learn a lot from their friendly against Scotland on Tuesday in Glasgow.
Both teams are top of their respective European Championship qualification groups when they play at Hampden Park.
Scotland has won five consecutive games, while England’s first hiccup in Group C came with a 1-1 draw against Ukraine in Poland on Saturday.
While other games in their groups take place during the week, the two sides will meet in a friendly match to commemorate the Scottish Football Association’s 150th anniversary.
The match may not have points or qualification on the line, but Pickford, who was in goal for England in the goalless draw between the sides at Euro 2020, believes the rivalry means there is still a lot at stake.
“When I was in the under-21s, the lads thought the 2-2 at Hampden Park was the best atmosphere they had ever played in,” the Everton goalkeeper added.
“Scotland is in good form, leading their Eurogroup. It’s a friendly, but it’ll be competitive against a strong team.
“You want that competition if you don’t have qualifiers; you want to be in matches where you can learn and gain something, going into a hostile crowd, different football experiences, things you should thrive on.”
“It will be a difficult game.” You know what their fans are like at Hampden Park; it’s something we want to thrive on; we want to go there, have the experience, and win the game.”
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