Jordan Pickford has lauded England's 'killer' bench, saying the team's star-studded substitutes can demoralize opponents in their quest for World Cup glory. The England goalkeeper spoke after Thomas Tuchel's side secured a memorable 4-2 victory over Croatia in their tournament opener in Dallas.
Super Subs Seal the Win
England boss Thomas Tuchel introduced Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford, and Morgan Rogers in the closing stages to seal the win. Djed Spence and Marc Guehi also came on, highlighting England's remarkable depth. Pickford believes any opponent would feel disheartened seeing such talent entering the field.
Speaking on the FA's Lions' Den show, Pickford said: “I think it’s great. We’ve got attacking options coming on, and you see the likes of Djed Spence coming on defensively. We can break it up, Reece James going into midfield. We’ve got variation all over the pitch, but for me it’s refreshing. We know what we can do with and without the ball, but I think for the opposition it’s a killer.”
He added: “You see the types of ability coming on the pitch, off the bench. I think it’s just going to drop their shoulders and take a deep breath. But that’s why we’re here, that’s why the managers picked the 26 he’s picked. Everyone is ready on the training pitch. Only 11 can start but that’s the impact we can have.”
Behind-Closed-Doors Friendly
England also played a behind-closed-doors friendly against local side Sporting KC, with Ivan Toney scoring a hat-trick while Rogers and Ollie Watkins also found the net.
Pickford emphasized the squad's unity and praised the fans for their support in the Croatia match, which he believes could be their toughest test. He said: “The fans in the stadium were fantastic and they always give us great support. I think it was a good game, and I think in general you probably needed that test for the first game. Everyone always says in tournament football the first game’s the most important to win and the hardest one to win.”
“We’ve played Croatia a lot over the years and we know they’re a top nation, so we needed to be on our A game. I think overall we will take a lot of good from it. From the two goals we conceded, but also the play with the goals we scored and the chances we created. As a collective, we’ll take a lot of positives from it.”
