Speaking recently on the Football Writers Podcast, Adrian Clarke stated his belief that Everton goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford, is ‘nowhere near the top five’ goalkeepers in the Premier League.
Since joining Everton from Sunderland in what was a £25.65 million deal back in 2017, Pickford has gone on to make 132 appearances for the Toffees, conceding 185 goals and keeping 38 clean sheets along the way.
The 26-year-old has also gone on to become a regular England international, earning 26 caps for his country, over which he has conceded 23 goals and kept 12 clean sheets.
However, in two recent Everton fixtures, the £25.2 million-rated shot-stopper has found himself under fire for his performances, with fans left angry with his display in the club’s 5-2 victory over West Bromwich Albion, as well as making two errors in the club’s recent Carabao Cup victory against Fleetwood Town, which, coincidentally, was another 5-2 result.
On the subject of the ‘keeper, Clarke also criticised Pickford, with the journalist stating on a recent episode of the Football Writers Podcast that the 26-year-old would be ‘closer to the bottom five’ goalkeepers in the Premier League than the top five, in terms of ability.
He said: “I don’t think they have a ‘keeper that’s one of the best in the league. Compare Jordan Pickford to the rest of the Premier League ‘keepers, where would he be in the pecking order, I wonder, where would you place him?
“I mean, he’d be nowhere near the top five, I think he would be closer to the bottom five than the top five, in my opinion, of Premier League ‘keepers. I don’t know where you would see it, am I being unfair?”
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TIF Thoughts…
From Clarke’s comments, it is clear that the journalist does not rate Pickford very highly whatsoever, and, considering the ‘keeper ranked 27th in terms of his average WhoScored match rating of all goalkeepers to feature in the Premier League last season, perhaps this is a fair assessment to make.
Whether or not the Everton manager, Carlo Ancelotti, will look to bring in a new goalkeeper over what is left of the summer transfer window, we will have to wait and see, but it is clear that Clarke believes the position is a weak point in the Italian’s side at present.