Jordan Pickford has insisted the England squad are 'chilled' despite the heavy criticism they have faced.
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Pickford calls for calmEngland criticised for Serbia and Denmark performancesFace Slovenia on TuesdayWHAT HAPPENED?
The England goalkeeper stressed that the team remain united behind Gareth Southgate and are not concerned with their performance levels. Pickford, who has been one of the few players to perform well in both games, wanted to emphasise that, after taking four points and sitting top of the group, there was little reason for concern amongst the squad.
AdvertisementGettyWHAT PICKFORD SAID
The England number one said to : "We are fine, we are chilled. It is tournament football. You have to enjoy the moment while you are here. We have got four points and we are top of the group, we are chilled. We know we can do a lot better in the games, but we haven’t been beaten. We have the same points after two games as the last two tournaments and I would say we are calm. The outside noise is that we have to perform come Tuesday but there is no need to panic."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
England were sub-par against Denmark as they laboured to a 1-1 draw in Frankfurt and were deservedly criticised for the nature of their performance. Questions have also been asked of the England boss Gareth Southgate for his team selection, formation and choice of substitutions but Pickford insists the squad remain behind Southgate.
He said: “Everyone is behind the manager. Everything we do in training and the meetings we have he delivers them brilliantly for us and gets us the right game plan. We weren’t perfect against Denmark, but that is a good feeling because we know we can improve. We know we have more to give in each game so to be on four points with a lot of improvement to come isn’t a bad feeling."
Getty WHAT NEXT FOR PICKFORD?
Pickford will once again be put in-between the sticks for the Three Lions as they take on Slovenia in their final group stage game. The Everton goalkeeper has been a consistent presence in the side under Gareth Southgate and recently overtook Peter Shilton as England's most-capped goalkeeper in major tournaments.