Always questioned and never surpassed, why does Pickford have the upper hand in England?

Tuchel said the competition for England's goalkeeper "has already begun", but is Pickford's position really under serious threat? How good is he?

If the 31-year-old Everton goalkeeper makes his 79th appearance for England in Thursday's friendly against Wales and can keep a clean sheet, he will break the Three Lions' record of seven consecutive games without conceding, shared by himself and legendary goalkeeper Banks.

While most recent clean sheets have come in lopsided World Cup qualifying matches, we already know Pickford's value in penalty shootouts in major tournaments.

With the help of former England goalkeepers Robinson and Green, as well as Pickford's old Everton teammates Rooney and Theo Walcott, the British media explored all aspects of Pickford and analyzed his importance to the England team.

"The important thing is that he made the save"

In addition to his ability to save points, Pickford's most famous characteristic may be his energy on the pitch.

But what are the technical advantages and disadvantages behind his emotions—and how important are they?

Green recalled: "I remember I was talking to Martin Magson, England's former goalkeeping coach, about Pickford, and I asked him, technically speaking, is he much better than others?"

"Margeson's answer was probably not, he has his own shortcomings and idiosyncrasies, like every goalkeeper."

"Margeson said that when he faced the shot, , he would spread his hands low and put one hand in front of the other. His positioning was a bit strange because his hands and feet were a bit out of sync and you could interpret his style however you wanted, the important thing is that he made the saves."

Pickford is known for his quick saves, but as with all modern goalkeepers, he is no longer judged solely on his hand movements.

"His foot skills have really improved across the board," Robinson explained. "Pickford's strengths have always been his long passes and ability to launch counterattacks - there are few people in the Premier League who are better at this than him."

"He can kick the ball dozens of meters as accurately as I did before, and as a goalkeeper, you enjoy that. Now the game has changed, but he can not only pass the ball long, but he can also coordinate short passes with his teammates in the backcourt."

"You can do everything you can to find it. A complete goalkeeper but when I analyze Pickford's overall game I feel he knows his qualities and has developed into the quality goalkeeper we are seeing now. "

"He knows what he's good at and what he might need to work on to improve, and he's still working on that. "

"He has calmed down a lot"

Pickford has no obvious weakness in preventing the ball from entering the net, but his temper is often regarded as the biggest problem.

Rooney once felt he was "too excited", especially compared to his long-term Manchester United partner Edwin van der Sar. The latter is always calm and collected.

But Walcott feels that as he grows older, Pickford has changed and is no longer as flamboyant as before.

"Pickford has calmed down a lot - I think he has become more mature." Walcott said.

"Early in his career, when I played with him, it felt like if he got bored during a game, he felt like he had to do something, just to give himself a sense of involvement."

"Now, I think he actually doesn't mind taking a step back because he understands that it all starts with the goalie , if he stays calm, he can help the back line and other players stay calm."

"He actually no longer participates in any battles on the field because he has matured."

However, you still wouldn't use the word "calm" to describe Pickford, and Green believes that emotion is still an important part of his character.

"Pickford does make his voice heard at times, but he has reached a certain level in all aspects of the game. He has proven his strength, so who are we to question it now?" Green added.

"He's been so good for so long that people sitting in the studio or in the stands used to say 'oh no, he's roaring again'. They should shut up now or say 'well, maybe he knows what he's doing'."

Performance at the club and quality in the England squad go hand in hand

Over the years Pickford's personality on the pitch has been linked to his performances - in his first few seasons at Everton we saw him make as many mistakes as he broke out.

That has changed too - he has made far fewer goal-leading errors while playing for the club in recent seasons, and his focus on the England squad has clearly increased.

Peter Hilton has played 125 times on behalf of the England team and is the only goalkeeper to have played more times for the England team than Pickford. But so far, Pickford has kept clean sheets in 50% of the games he has played for England. Since making his England debut in 2017, he has only made one mistake that resulted in a goal, a poor clearance against Belgium in March 2024.

Green said: "There was only one mistake that led to a goal. This statistic really shows his stability when guarding the goal for England. In terms of the number of international matches he has participated in, this is equivalent to more than two seasons. Only one mistake was made in the Premier League."

"I think part of the reason why he has such a stable performance is that the previous friendlies have become the current UEFA Nations League, which means that the teammates in front of him will not change 9 people in a game and cause defensive chaos..

"The England manager picks a strong squad every game, so Pickford can also maintain consistency. This helps, but he also deserves credit because he has reached the same level at Everton."

"It can be said that he has reacted more quickly in the England team, probably because his Everton team are in the middle of the Premier League and he is affected almost every week. The bombing of opponents' shots and crosses. In any case, England fans and Everton fans are now grateful to have him. "

"Cultivated the mentality of becoming England's number one goalkeeper"

Robinson played 41 times for England between 2003 and 2007, and kept opponents in six consecutive games in 2006, almost tying Banks' record. He believes Pickford's ability to deal with criticism is another reason why he has been England's number one goalkeeper for so long.

Robinson added: "Pickford has worked extremely hard on the game, but I think he has also worked extremely hard on himself and developing the mentality to be England's number one goalkeeper."

"When you play for England, every time you concede a goal you are scrutinized very hard and you have to deal with the noise. But Pickford has done more than that, he has made the noise disappear, and the criticism of him in the past has now disappeared. No longer exists. "

"While the clean sheet was a collective effort, if you really look at the way he controlled the defense at Everton and saw how strong and consistent they were in a team that was struggling, then a lot of that is down to him. "

Pickford transferred from Sunderland to Everton in June 2017 for a transfer fee of 30 million pounds, setting a record transfer fee for a British goalkeeper at the time. Last Sunday (October 5), Pickford completed his 300th Premier League appearance in Everton's victory over Crystal Palace. He began talks with Everton last month over a contract extension, with his current contract expiring in 2027.

The last time his contract was about to expire was in 2023. At that time, he had "scandals" with Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, but in the end he renewed his contract and stayed at the Toffees. It is reported that this time his contract will be extended to 2029, with a one-year extension option.

"I'm surprised he's been able to play for Everton for so long." Walcott said.

"I thought many times that he would leave and go to a team that could compete in the Champions League, but he stayed. It is a testament to his character."

"He has always been happy to be Everton's number one goalkeeper, which I understand. Everton is a very good football club. He knows that if he moves, he can It could affect his status in the England team, so he did not transfer."

"First Pickford...then everyone else"

Tuchel told England players in June that "there is a battle in every position" and goalkeeper "is no exception".

For Pickford, Crystal Palace's 28-year-old goalkeeper Dean Henderson and Manchester City's 22-year-old Trafford should both be regarded as main competitors, and both were also selected for the lineup against Wales and Latvia.

Pope, 33, and his Newcastle team-mate Ramsdale, 27, are also on the shortlist - but Pope has not been named in any of Tuchel's four lists so far. Although Ramsdale was selected for one of the rounds, like Trafford's problem, neither of them is currently the club's main goalkeeper.

"I don't think any of them has the aura of Pickford, who is not only the best goalkeeper in England now but one of the best ever," Walcott said. Pickford played a key role in England's run to the 2018 World Cup semi-finals and back-to-back European Cup finals in 2021 and 2024.

"He's very underrated," added Rooney. "What he's done at Everton, and also with England, in the big games has been unbelievable. He doesn't often get mentioned when people talk about world-class goalkeepers, but he's definitely one of them." It's fun to be together. He's definitely the kind of guy you want in the dressing room and he's outspoken, which is always a good thing."

After October, there are only two windows for the national team before the World Cup, in November and March, so there are limited opportunities for Dean Henderson, who has made three appearances, and Trafford, who has not yet had a chance to play.

"The pecking order is set," said Green, who won 12 England caps between 2005 and 2012. "First it's Pickford and then everyone else."

"You know Pickford has been there and done what he has to do, in the biggest moments, under the most pressure you can as a goalkeeper."

"I think over the past few major tournaments he's been there and done it. We didn't get to the critical moment, and we didn't think that replacing Pickford would be the answer. In the past, when people talked about the key factors in winning and losing, this issue was never part of the discussion, and I don't think it is now." "This is the first time in a long time that there's no debate about who should be England's number one and it's a credit to him because he's done so well," Robinson said. "We've had that experience with David Seaman and I've been England's number one for a short time and I know from experience that when you get it sorted out you know you've won because it's an ongoing discussion that everyone likes to be a part of.. "

"Pickford has represented the England team 78 times. He has participated in many major events, has rich experience, and has performed well in various events. There is no doubt that whenever the England squad is announced, his name will be at the top of the list, just like Seaman's name all those years ago.

"That's the level Pickford is at now, and of course we have a lot of other talented goalkeepers, but everyone is at a different stage, with different levels of confidence and experience, or the level they've shown at the club."

"Dean Henderson has been fantastic this season, technically very good, and one day he will be up to the job. But there's no need to discuss that now."