The international break is upon us, which means Leeds United goalkeeper James Trafford is back in England No1 debates alongside Everton’s Jordan Pickford.
Aside from a couple of calamitous errors, James Trafford has been outstanding in a Leeds shirt this season. A £40million fee has already been justified through his marvellous performances, most recently pulling out a top-draw save to confirm our win vs Spurs.
With England duty looming tonight against then against Spurs, the question once again is: how close is Trafford to displacing Jordan Pickford as England’s No1?
Troy Deeney slates James Trafford and Jordan Pickford in England goalkeeper rant
As we look ahead to tonight’s England v Croatia clash, it’s unclear who will start between Pickford and Trafford. Thomas Tuchel’s comments this week outline his commitment to having Pickford as his first choice, but also noted how the Leeds man is going to continue getting regular exposure, something Everton’s main man is encouraging.
However, Troy Deeney believes neither are up to scratch relative to England’s ambitions of winning major tournaments.
“He’s [Trafford] a good kid by all accounts, he’s a good player all in all,” Deeney said on talKSPORT’s Premier League All Access podcast. “But we’re talking about the top, top level.
“Unfortunately, Jordan Pickford is three levels above every goalkeeper that’s playing at the moment for England.”
Then, Deeney took aim at Everton’s mainstay too.
“People gave me a bit of stick in the summer, they thought I was coming after him. I’m not, I’m just saying in England, Jordan Pickford is here [higher], everybody else is here [lower].
“In world football, everybody else is here [higher], Jordan Pickford’s here [lower]. And where we’d got to in that final four, he was the fifth-best goalkeeper because David Raya was on the bench for Spain.
“So, I don’t think there is any competition. Jordan is the man who will go on to have an unbelievable career as one of the best England goalkeepers of all time, as he should be.
“But when we’re talking about those smaller details, in that 0.1% about winning competitions, I just think he can’t compete with those other guys.”
James Trafford will prove Troy Deeney badly wrong as Leeds United’s season continues
You’ve got to ask yourself this: why does Tuchel want to give Trafford as much playing time as possible alongside Pickford?
Because Tuchel clearly views Trafford as the successor to Pickford as England’s No1. So, getting him integrated and used to playing for England as much as possible is the only logical step.
And then there’s the disrespect towards Pickford. It’s hard to fathom slating Pickford constantly when he’s been one of the main reasons England have gone so deep in multiple major tournaments.
Yes, he could’ve done better against Argentina, but to say he’s the fifth-best ‘keeper from the World Cup semi-finalists is tragic. Emi Martinez is past his best, which he’s proven at Aston Villa and Chelsea. Mike Maignan is not a world-class goalkeeper. And Unai Simon did well for Spain but had virtually nothing to do. To instantly dismiss Pickford is really bizarre.
Any level-headed analysis of England’s main two goalkeepers comes to the same conclusion: they’re both very good.
