England enjoyed a rousing 4-2 victory over Croatia in their opening game at the World Cup, but not every member of Thomas Tuchel's side has received praise for their performance in Dallas. One England player has been criticised.
Thomas Tuchel has been told that 'chaotic' Jordan Pickford will cost England a chance of winning the World Cup. That's the scathing verdict of former Premier League striker Troy Deeney, who believes that Pickford 'doesn't give you any confidence'. The Everton goalkeeper continued his run of starting every competitive game under Tuchel on Wednesday, but he was unable to keep a clean sheet as the Three Lions beat Croatia 4-2 to kick off their World Cup campaign in Dallas.
Pickford, 32, has been England's undisputed No.1 for nearly a decade, rarely letting his country down in the previous four major tournaments. But the goalkeeper's performance against Croatia was criticised in some quarters, and he was spotted having a first-half row with Tuchel. Deeney has now warned the England boss that according to him, Pickford can't be trusted.
On CBS Sports, the ex-Watford captain was asked if he felt that Pickford was too chaotic. 'To say the least, yeah,' Deeney replied. 'I don't really know the stats and all of that. I'm just saying what my eyes told me. I still think he should have saved the first one [Croatia goal], that's my opinion. I think when you get a hand to it, it's got to be a solid hand and keep it out.'
'There's just that feeling when I watch Jordan…there's a shot from 50 yards and it trickles to him and he's screaming at everyone, 'Do your job! Don't let any shots come in'!' 'Every time he parries one, fouls someone, does whatever, he's like, 'Don't look at me'. We're trying to win a World Cup. That's why we're here. In my opinion, and respectfully Jordan, because you know I like you. We can't win it with that guy in goal. He doesn't give you any confidence.'
In contrast to Deeney's opinion, Manchester United defender Harry Maguire - who's played alongside Pickford at three tournaments - hailed his long-time team-mate for being 'really, really calm under pressure'. Appearing on The Rest is Football, Maguire gave an insight into Tuchel's tactical approach. 'I think we've got four lads in the back four who all want to build up,' Maguire explained. 'I think Picks [Pickford] today was really calm. Really, really calm under pressure.'
'I think the two in central midfield want to take the ball. I think the wide wingers, he's big on pressure and counter-press. So I think we're going to build up but I think the flip side is we're going to press high and press in their half and I think we saw that today.'
