By Lori Ewing
KANSAS CITY, Missouri, July 13 (Reuters) – England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford has faced World Cup penalty shootouts, semi-finals and some of the biggest names in football during his record-breaking career, but there is one challenge that has eluded him until now.
When England take on Lionel Messi and reigning champions Argentina in Wednesday’s World Cup semi-final in Atlanta, Pickford will come up against the eight-times Ballon d’Or winner for the first time.
For a player who broke Peter Shilton’s record for most England World Cup appearances when he started his 18th match in the quarter-final against Norway, the occasion carries a sense of history.
The 32-year-old Everton player was eight when England last met Argentina, during the group stage of the 2002 World Cup.
“I remember being sat in school on the floor watching when the teacher wheeled in the TV, so I’ll never forget that moment,” Pickford told reporters on Monday.
“He’s scored so many goals and he’s contributed to so many goals all his career, and it’s great to be able to finally come up against him after so long and watching him as a kid,” Pickford said of the 39-year-old Messi, who is playing in his sixth World Cup.
The goalkeeper warned, however, about treating Argentina as a one-man team.
“We all know how good Messi is, but we also know how good Argentina are, Pickford said. “We’ve got our thoughts on their other strengths as well, and the other weaknesses we can take advantage of.”
England arrived among the favourites and have navigated numerous pressure situations, including a 10-man win over Mexico, throughout the tournament, which Pickford said underlined a resilience that has become a defining characteristic of Thomas Tuchel’s side.
“I’ve always said the togetherness gets you there. Then the ability shows as well,” he said. “But the togetherness, if you’ve got that togetherness like we have, that’s a great tool to have.”
DARK ARTS
Argentina’s run to the semi-finals has been accompanied by complaints over refereeing decisions and the team’s mastery of football’s so-called “dark arts”, but Pickford said England would not be distracted by anything.
“Throughout the tournament, you’ve seen our desire to win titles. We’ve not got into any scuffles or anything, we’ve been very well respected within the game,” he said. “Decisions go our way, they don’t go our way. We just reset, and we let the football do the talking.
“We’ve not had, apart from Jarell (Quansah, who was suspended for two games), any suspensions or anything like that. It shows the mentality we have, we don’t get wrapped up in things like that. We stay focused. We stay together.”
Tuchel raised eyebrows after the Norway win when he angrily highlighted areas England needed to improve in, and Pickford agreed the team had not reached their peak.
“Like the manager said, the mentality we have in abundance and the togetherness we have, but we’re not the finished article,” he said. “We hope the cream rises to the top. And we’ll always keep working harder to keep improving because you don’t want to think: the job’s done against Norway.”
Pickford was England’s keeper during the last-16 shootout against Colombia in 2018, saving Carlos Bacca’s penalty before Eric Dier converted the winning spot-kick to secure England’s first World Cup shootout victory.
Pickford said the players were determined to reward the faith of a nation daring to dream of World Cup glory for the first time since 1966.
“You know how we feel, you see us after every game, and to have the nation behind us at home doesn’t go unseen. We know how much it means to them, but we also know how much it means to us, and we pay huge credit to them enjoying themselves. We’re doing it for them as well,” Pickford said.
“That was the first goal, looking back at 2018 (under previous manager Gareth Southgate), it was about connecting the nation. Now we’re in the semi-final (again), and we know Argentina is going to be a tough game, but we want to put smiles on (supporters’) faces as well.”
(Reporting by Lori Ewing, editing by Ed Osmond)
