Former England goalkeeper David James has no doubts over who should be England's number one - Jordan Pickford.
He believes the Everton star has earned the right to the role and places him above rivals Aaron Ramsdale and Nick Pope. Hailing his displays for his country as "exceptional", he said the job is essentially Pickford's to lose.
He added: "I just hope he continues the form he showed at the Euros, where in my opinion he was equal to [Italy goalkeeper] Gianluigi Donnarumma in every sense. That’s where he’s at."
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Pickford has started the World Cup as Gareth Southgate's first choice. Having led England to a World Cup semi-final and the final of Euro 2020 this is little surprise - despite claims from elsewhere that Ramsdale or Pope would be better options. For James, the decision is an easy one. In an interview with Genting Casino, he said: "I agree with the decision to play Jordan Pickford over Aaron Ramsdale and Nick Pope. With England you have to play yourself into the squad with top performances in league football. This is Jordan’s third tournament at number one, and I can’t think of another keeper, maybe David Seaman, who had multiple tournaments at number one. So in a sense he’s now an England keeper who plays for Everton, rather than an Everton goalkeeper who plays for England. He’s earned the right to be number one, his performances have been exceptional for England."
James went on to say: "The likes of Pope and Ramsdale, they are going to struggle to take his place because he keeps doing it for England. There will come a time of course when it changes, and for me I’d put Ramsdale ahead of Pope. Ramsdale has been playing in Europe, and has the potential to play in the Champions League. If he gets to the latter stages of that, then all of a sudden he’s making a case. But for this World Cup, Pickford is number one comfortably."
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