Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford expressed his confidence that England would not lose after conceding an early goal against Italy in their 3-1 win at Wembley. Now, he aims to bring the mental strength of the England national team back to Everton, inspired by their comeback against Italy in the Euro 2024 qualification match.
England initially fell behind when Gianluca Scamacca scored for Italy in the 15th minute. However, England rallied as captain Harry Kane equalized with a penalty on 32 minutes, and Marcus Rashford and Kane added two more goals on 57 and 77 minutes, respectively.
At Everton, under the leadership of Sean Dyche, the team has excelled when scoring first, winning seven out of ten Premier League games and drawing the remaining three. However, they have struggled when opponents score first, with three draws and 12 defeats. The only time Everton came from behind to win under Dyche was against League Two Doncaster Rovers in the Carabao Cup on August 30.
Pickford hopes to instill some of the resilience and determination exhibited by Gareth Southgate’s England side into Everton. He emphasized that facing challenges and coming back from a deficit are part of the process of becoming the best.
While reflecting on the game against Italy, Pickford noted that the match was a rematch of the previous European Championship final, which England lost in a penalty shootout. However, England secured their spot in the next summer’s tournament in Germany with two games remaining, while Italy’s hopes of defending their title remain uncertain.
Pickford also mentioned that England has now qualified for eight consecutive major tournaments. His goal is to be the first-choice goalkeeper for England in a fourth consecutive major tournament, following the defeat to France in the World Cup in Qatar in December. He believes that the squad’s experience and resilience have grown over the years.