Pickford out to maintain momentum

Ex-Sunderland star Jordan Pickford expects to learn before the start of the World Cup whether he or Jack Butland is England’s first-choice goalkeeper.

Joe Hart’s omission and Gareth Southgate’s selection of the inexperienced Pickford, Butland and Nick Pope means there is more uncertainty surrounding England’s options than at any time since Hart became a regular in 2010.

That Wearsider Pickford was awarded his third cap in Saturday’s 2-1 friendly win over Nigeria means he is in contention to start the World Cup against Tunisia on June 18, even if Butland is selected to face Costa Rica in Thursday’s friendly at Leeds.

Pickford, 24, said: “Nothing’s been confirmed yet. I’ve just to keep putting in performances like I did and keep working hard in training.

“That’s all I’ve done throughout my career. Getting the nod (against Nigeria) was brilliant – there’s another cap ticked off and another solid performance. That’s three good performances for the team.

“Nothing’s been said. We’ve got three days’ training before the (Costa Rica) game, so I’ve just got to train hard and work hard off the pitch and hopefully I’ll get the nod again.

“I’ve worked with the manager before at Under-21 level, so maybe he will tell us in advance, but when that will be I don’t know.”

England impressed in Saturday’s first half at Wembley. Though they thereafter struggled to play with the same fluidity, Pickford believes that by still securing victory they passed a significant test of their character,

“Our mental side of the game in the second half was quality,” he said, touching on a trait which has often undermined them in tournaments.

“We know about our technical ability and we know we can create a lot of opportunities, so it’s about defending and adapting to stuff and we did it. I know we didn’t create a lot of chances, but we still did important stuff.”