The great suffering of the mad Jordan Pickford
A long wait, a lot of anxiety and poor performance: Somehow England managed to reach the quarter-final of the UEFA European Championship. Particularly suffering spectaculately: Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Jordan Pickford has a major problem. He is the goalkeeper of the English football national team. It's not that he had too much to do in the Euro 2020 round of 16, but rather that he couldn't do anything. After all, as a goalkeeper, he stands in his bright green jersey with a 40-meter safety buffer from what his teammates do. Or rather, don't do.
The Three Lions, the proud football nation that has dreamed of the next major title since 1966, struggled against Slovakia - and saved themselves with a 2:1 win in extra time. But the word "struggled" doesn't quite capture what English fans had to endure. The team of coach Gareth Southgate refused to play any engaging, fast, or in any way interesting football, as they had already shown in the group stage.
It's as if the English had an embedded speed limit that prevents their stars like Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Kyle Walker, and others from realizing their great potential from club football. Like an excessively expensive sports car that only drives at a maximum of 80 kilometers per hour on the highway. In the group stage, the games against Serbia (1:0), Denmark (1:1), and Slovenia (0:0) were already hard to bear.
Like Manuel Neuer
For English fans, these three games were particularly tough going for one person: Jordan Pickford. The 30-year-old is one of the few in the English luxury squad who doesn't play for a top club but for Everton. And he can only exert limited influence on the game, after all, he is tethered to his penalty area. At 1.85 meters, he is not particularly tall for a goalkeeper, and he has both arms tattooed, his hair always combed back. One could easily imagine him in the pub district of Brighton.
But Pickford is also an intriguing character in his own right, as goalkeepers often are. After all, there are German examples: Oliver Kahn, Jens Lehmann, or Manuel Neuer. These are types who take off like a rocket and sometimes lose control. Pickford fits into this category in some way. But he is more of an actor, someone who lives every second of an England game with feverish intensity. His reactions during an England game are entertainingly desperate.
When Pickford's performance is the most entertaining thing about the English team, that says a lot about the Three Lions' performance. In front of him, his teammates push the ball aimlessly back and forth against the Slovakian defense. Pickford stands 40 meters back and searches desperately for eye contact with the bench. It's as if he were saying: "Surely that can't be serious." He speaks to himself frequently, drums on his chest, raises his fists into the air occasionally. Sometimes he gets caught red-handed, as he exhorts the already passionate crowd. Among English journalists, it is said that some central defenders were surprised to find a goalkeeper who shouted at them so loudly.
The English team plays terribly and lies far behind against Slovakia. In the 25th minute, Ivan Schranz shocks the Euro 2021 finalists. The defense is disorganized, Pickford is not to blame. But the goalkeeper is changed by the goal. The already questionable gestures become even more extravagant with the progression of the game. He argues with center back John Stones, who doesn't take it well. When Kane misses a header for the Slovakian goal, the gaze quickly shifts to the other side: Pickford has seen the opportunity naturally, he lies on the grass in a sun-worshipper pose. In the 81st minute, Declan Rice's long shot hits the post, Kane chases the rebound over the goal. A quick look: Pickford kneels despairingly in front of the English penalty area.
Double Biceps, then the Saw
Time is running out. The referee crew gives the English team an additional six minutes of stoppage time to avoid elimination in the Round of 16 against Slovakia with a 0:1 score. And it's just in "Gelsenkörten", the city where the English seem to have somehow reconciled themselves. As the fourth official holds up the board with the stoppage time, Pickford places his hands on his knees and sighs once more.
The English team, improved after halftime, continue to press the Slovakian goal. At every action that could potentially yield a chance, a man in a bright jersey stands 60 meters away on the other side of the field, leaning left and right as if playing a video game. In the 95th minute, his prayers are intensified: Bellingham scores with a sliding tackle. Pickford rushes to the English goalkeeper's box, faster than one can turn their head from left to right. Back in the goal, before the restart, he runs towards defender Kyle Walker, boasts with both arms about his biceps. Then back to business as usual: arms spinning, pumping up the crowd.
Extension. From now on, every action can not only be decisive for the game but also make it go home faster. Luck for Pickford's pulse: The English team quickly establishes clear positions in extra time. 91st minute, Kane heads the ball into the goal. On the other side, the goalkeeper races towards the substitution bench. This time, no biceps celebration, but the classic: the saw.
The Southgate team wants to bring the narrow 2:1 lead over the time. It begins a nerve-wracking game: A Slovak player commits a foul, England wins an important free kick in their own half: Pickford is overrun. Though he is miles away from the action, the goalkeeper conducts from his own half. Does anyone notice? Probably not. Pickford starts now with time-wasting, for a free kick he suddenly stops, for a throw-in he takes an eternity. Goal kicks are a theme for him anyway: He always gathers so much momentum that he falls from one leg to the other.
Somehow he keeps trying to calm down the game, but his gestures grow wilder with each second. When the ball is not in play, he paces in the center of the penalty area and midfield. His actions become more spectacular: In the 111th minute, the Slovenes are awarded a free kick right in front of his penalty area. But Pickford doesn't let the shot just go over his goal. He clings to the post and pushes a save behind it. He grumbles, shouts, points at something only he can see.
The extension is nearing its end: Some gestures barely make sense anymore. He lifts an arm without any connection to the game. Pickford urges his teammates, falls to the ground. What kind of pulse does he have in there? He conducts and shouts, none of the English defenders even turn their heads. Pickford nods along to chants, he's completely in the zone. It sometimes looks like he's having internal conversations.
In the last seconds of the extension, he suddenly turns completely around. When Ivan Toney shoots from an excellent position over the Slovakian goal, Pickford flops onto his belly and begins to stomp his legs like a child. He catches the header at the end of the last Slovakian attack, not only that, he falls backwards by a meter and a half. Pickford doesn't just get up, he rises. With the ball clutched to his body with one arm, he pats his chest with the other. Then he raises his free arm into the air. He shakes his index finger and makes a gesture: not with me.
Then it's done. England really turns the game around. 2:1 in extra time. And Pickford? Slowly, he makes his way through the chaos to the English bench. He sends kisses to the crowd, then slaps a few functionaries on the back, he distributes hugs and disappears into the dressing room. The show is over. The next stage is in Düsseldorf. Then in the quarterfinals against Switzerland.
Despite the team's struggles, England manages to secure a place in the European Football Championship 2024 quarter-finals, with goalkeeper Jordan Pickford being a notable figure. Despite being criticized for his performance during the Euro 2020 round of 16, Pickford is eager to redeem himself in the upcoming tournament. With England aiming to bring home the European Football Championship Trophy since 1966, Pickford is determined to play a significant role in achieving this long-dreamt victory for England and English football fans.
