Jordan Pickford has opened up on the goal that ended England's World Cup campaign and the growing competition for his place from James Trafford.
Pickford was beaten by Enzo Fernandez's long-range strike in Argentina's 2-1 semi-final comeback win after England had led through Anthony Gordon. The Everton goalkeeper has since revisited the moment as part of his preparation to improve.
“I tried to scan for the ball. There were a lot of bodies in front.
“He's got a free touch and shot. It just went away from me.”
Pickford acknowledged that the goal would continue to attract scrutiny, while arguing that the technical judgement belonged to people who understand the demands of goalkeeping.
“It's one of them where everyone will judge. In that moment, you know yourself if you could have done better or not. I went after the ball and I didn't get it.
“There’s always going to be people asking the questions, but I think if you're not a goalkeeping expert then you won't know what you're talking about.”
The 32-year-old is also dealing with a new challenge for his England position. Trafford started the first two matches of the international break against Spain and Czechia before Pickford returned for the games against Croatia and the Czech Republic.
Thomas Tuchel explained the change to Pickford as an opportunity to give Trafford two matches in a new competition. Pickford said he accepted the decision and welcomed the competition.
“The manager mentioned it as well. It got explained the night before the Spain game.
“He said it was a new competition, to also give Traff a couple of games. It was fine by me and it was like: ‘Right, now it's time I need to go again.’”
Pickford, who has 91 England caps and has been the country's first-choice goalkeeper since his debut in 2017, said competition had always been part of his international career.
“It's good for Traff. I've always said I've had good competition since I made my debut in 2017, I've always had that competition, and it's about me improving, keep going, keep striving for me.”
He is also continuing work with a sports psychologist, including a three-hour Zoom session on Thursday night.
“For me it's breaking that ceiling to that next level and I'll put the work in. People might not see it, but I put a lot of work in myself to just be the best version of me.”
Pickford said the work includes discussing criticism, improvement, breathing exercises and day-to-day issues. His focus, he added, remains on developing rather than dwelling on outside judgement.
“I find it really useful. We just spoke about criticism and I can only vouch for myself, and it works for me.
“It might not work for others, but I'm open to talk about it. That's just me because I want to improve.”
The comments underline how Pickford is approaching the competition around him. His response is centred on preparation and development.