da fezbet： Jordan Pickford is a confident character and England love penalty drama, but would the Three Lions keeper step up to the spot in a Euro 2024 shootout?
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Southgate's side seeking continental crownReliable Everton shot-stopper between the sticksSpot-kicks a possibility in the knockout stagesGettyWHAT HAPPENED?
Legendary former England goalkeeper David Seaman knows all about spot-kick pressure, having taken and faced penalties in his time, and he has now linked up with Manchester United icon Peter Schmeichel for a three-part mini-series from that discusses all things Euros, hottest heads in the dressing room and the true heritage of bacon and eggs!
As part of that collaboration, Seaman has told GOAL when asked if he would like to see Pickford step up in another shootout for the Three Lions: “I think I’ve seen him take a penalty before [against Switzerland in the Nations League]. He absolutely smashed it. I have actually taken a penalty, against Peter Schmeichel, and it was only in the Charity Shield. I was like ‘yeah, I’ll take one’, giving it all cool and calm. I put the ball down – this is at Wembley – and then looked up. The goal appeared to shrink because Peter filled the goal. I tried to place it and he saved it easily. I’m sure he started laughing when it was on its way! The only thing with a goalkeeper taking penalties is if they go for power, then body and muscle memory kicks in as though it’s a goal kick and you lean back a little bit and then it can go over the bar. I’d rather stick to saving them than trying to take them. It’s a whole different ball game.”
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While indulging in British and Danish cuisine with Euro 92 winner Schmeichel ahead of England’s Group C clash with Denmark on Thursday, Seaman added on keepers priding themselves on clean ball striking – which should lend itself nicely to penalty-taking duty: “But when we’re hitting it, we’re getting it into a certain area of the pitch – not in the goal. If you are going to take a penalty, you are only choosing half of the goal. It could work because we normally hit it high, and those are the ones that are hardest to save, but there is risk involved in that. Once I did that in the Charity Shield, I was like ‘never again’.”
Frank's RedHot SauceTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Seaman went on to say of Pickford’s strengths and weaknesses as a goalkeeper, with the 30-year-old closing in on 300 appearances for Premier League side Everton while also passing 60 for his country: “I’ve not seen any weaknesses, because he doesn’t really have any. He’s been brilliant for England. People ask me ‘who is England’s No.1?’ and I’ve said it all the time, Jordan Pickford. He’s been brilliant for England, shown great form. With Everton it has been a little indifferent, but for me he is England’s No.1 and there isn’t anybody close to him. Aaron [Ramsdale] was getting close and has obviously been left out for most of this season [at Arsenal]. In Jordan you have got a goalkeeper that is super confident. He loves shouting at people, organising and re-organising and re-organising! He is really on it. His distribution is fantastic. He’s England’s No.1, easily.”
DID YOU KNOW?
For now, any penalty that England win is likely to be taken by record goalscorer Harry Kane – or the likes of Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer if the Bayern Munich striker is not on the pitch – with Seaman saying when asked if the Three Lions’ captain can break his much-publicised trophy duck while on international duty: “Harry is too good a player to go through without winning anything. As a striker, he has got everything – he will get the little tap-ins, the shots from outside the box, obviously his penalties are brilliant. I’d love him to win a trophy, especially now. It wasn’t as much like that when he was at Tottenham, but for England it would be brilliant.”