England boss Gareth Southgate believes it would be difficult for Jordan Pickford to remain his first-choice goalkeeper if Everton were relegated to the Sky Bet Championship.
The Blues’ battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League will go to the last game of the season against Bournemouth. Everton welcome Gary O’Neil’s side to Goodison Park on Sunday afternoon, knowing that a win would preserve their Premier League status.
Yerry Mina’s 99th-minute equaliser earned the Blues a point against Wolverhampton Wanderers last time out. Everton then remained outside the relegation zone after Leeds United and Leicester City both failed to pick up all three points in their respective fixtures.
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Pickford was named in Southgate’s latest England squad on Wednesday afternoon for next month’s Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia. And when asked about the prospect of his goalkeeper playing in the second-tier next season, Southgate pointed to the differences in speed at the lower level as the reason why it would be difficult for the 29-year-old to remain his No. 1.
"That would depend on how well he was playing," Southgate replied when asked about the Everton goalkeeper remaining his first-choice while playing in the Sky Bet Championship.
"It wouldn’t be ideal because clearly the level of attacks, finishing, and speed of the game would be completely different, so I think it would be difficult, but let’s see what Sunday brings."
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