A long deficit, a lot of anxiety and a poor performance: somehow England reached the quarter-finals of the European Football Championship. One player in particular suffered spectacularly: goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Jordan Pickford has a huge problem. He is the goalkeeper of the English national football team. The problem is not that he had too much to do in the European Championship round of 16, but rather that he himself can’t do anything. As a goalkeeper, he stands in his bright green jersey at a safe distance of 40 meters from what his teammates are doing. Or rather: not doing.
He was excited too: Jordan Pickford.
(Foto: picture alliance/dpa)
The Three Lions, the proud football nation that has been dreaming of the next big title since 1966, struggled against Slovakia – and saved themselves with a 2:1 victory in extra time. But the word “struggle” is not enough to describe what the English fans had to go through. Just as in the group phase, coach Gareth Southgate’s team refused to play any exciting, fast or in any way interesting football.
It is as if the English have a built-in speed limit that prevents stars like Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Kyle Walker and Co. from reaching their full potential in club football. Like an incredibly expensive sports car that can only drive at a maximum of 80 kilometers per hour on the motorway. In the preliminary round, the games against Serbia (1:0), Denmark (1:1) and Slovenia (0:0) were already difficult to bear.
Like a Manuel Riemann
The three games were tough for the English fans anyway, but for one in particular: 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 FC. And he can only have a limited influence on the game, after all he is tied to his penalty area. At 1.85 meters, he is not particularly tall for a goalkeeper, he has one arm covered in tattoos, his hair is always gelled back. Someone you can easily imagine in the bar district of Brighton.
But Pickford is also a remarkable guy in his own right, as goalkeepers usually are anyway. Just the German examples: Oliver Kahn, Jens Lehmann or Manuel Riemann. They are guys who get worked up quickly and sometimes lose control of themselves. Pickford also fits into this category. But he is more of an actor, someone who is excited about every second of the game. His emotions during an England game are both entertaining and desperate.
If 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 colleagues pass the ball back and forth in an uninspired manner in front of the Slovakian box. Pickford stands 40 metres further back and desperately tries to make eye contact with the bench. It is as if he is saying: They can’t be serious. He keeps talking to himself, beating his chest, sometimes raising a fist in the air. Sometimes he can be caught cheering on the already enthusiastic crowd. There is a story among English journalists that some centre-backs were surprised that there was suddenly a goalkeeper shouting at them so loudly.
Not only did the English play terribly, they were also behind for a long time against Slovakia. In the 25th minute, Ivan Schranz shocked the 2021 European Championship finalists. The defense was poorly organized, and Pickford was not to blame. But the goal changed the goalkeeper. The already conspicuous gestures became more and more expansive and bigger as the game progressed. He scolded center-back John Stones, who didn’t even notice. When a Kane header missed the Slovakian goal, the view quickly went to the other side: Pickford had of course seen the chance, he was lying on the grass in a sun-worshipping pose. In the 81st minute, Declan Rice’s long-range shot hit the post and Kane sent the rebound over the goal. A quick look: Pickford was kneeling in despair in front of the English penalty area.
First double biceps, then the saw
Time is running out. The referee team gives the English another six minutes of stoppage time to avoid being knocked out of the round of 16 by Slovakia with a 0-1 defeat. And this in “Gelsenkörken”, of all places, the city with which the English now seem to have somehow reconciled themselves. When the fourth official raises the stoppage time board in the air, Pickford puts his hands on his knees and takes another deep breath.
The English, much improved after half-time, continue to press on the Slovakian goal. Whenever there is any action that could even remotely create a chance, a man in a bright green shirt stands 60 metres away on the other side of the field, leaning left and right as if he were playing a video game. In the 95th minute, his prayers are heightened: Bellingham scores with an overhead kick. Pickford rushes to the English bench faster than you can turn your head from left to right. Back in the goal, before the restart, he runs towards defender Kyle Walker, showing off his biceps with both arms. After that, it’s business as usual: arms circle over and over, cheering on the crowd.
Then: extra time. From now on, every action can not only be decisive for the game, but it can also ensure that the team goes home sooner than expected. Lucky for Pickford’s pulse: The English quickly make things clear in the extra time. 91st minute, Kane heads the ball into the goal. On the other side, the goalkeeper runs to the bench as if he had been stung by a tarantula. This time, however, no bicep celebration, but the classic: the saw.
Southgate’s eleven want to hold on to their narrow 2-1 lead. A nerve-wracking game begins: a Slovakian fouls the striker, England wins an important free kick in their own half: Pickford lets himself be attacked. Although he is miles away from the action, the goalkeeper directs from his own half. Does anyone even notice? Not really. Pickford now starts to waste time, he suddenly limps during a free kick and takes ages to take a goal kick. Goal kicks are an issue for him anyway: he always gets so much momentum that he falls from one foot to the other.
Screaming and directing, but no one is listening
Somehow he keeps trying to calm the game down, but his gestures become more and more violent by the second. When the ball is not in play, he paces back and forth in the middle of the penalty area and the center circle. His actions become more and more spectacular: In the 111th minute, the Slovakians are awarded a free kick right in front of his penalty area. But Pickford does not simply let the shot go over his goal. He grabs the crossbar and does a pull-up afterwards. He shouts, chants, points his finger at something that only he can see.
Extra time is drawing to a close: some of the gestures are almost beyond words. He keeps raising an arm, without any connection to the game. Pickford cheers on his teammates, sinks into a crouch. What kind of pulse must he have? He directs and shouts, none of the English defenders even turns their heads. Pickford nods along to the chants, he is completely in the tunnel. Sometimes it looks as if he is talking to himself.
In the last seconds of extra time, he goes completely crazy. When substitute Ivan Toney shoots over the Slovakian goal from a promising position, Pickford flops down on his stomach and starts kicking his legs like a small child. He not only catches the header that comes at the end of the last Slovakian attack, he also falls forwards a meter and a half. Pickford doesn’t just stand up after that, he stands up. With the ball pressed to his body with one arm, he pats his chest with the other. Then he stretches his free arm in the air. He shakes his index finger and makes it clear with a gesture: not with me.
Then it’s done. England actually turns the game around. 2:1 after extra time. And Pickford? He slowly makes his way to the English bench in the hustle and bustle. He blows kisses into the crowd, then high-fives a few officials, gives hugs and disappears into the dressing room. The show is over. The next stage is in Düsseldorf. Then in the quarter-finals against Switzerland.
