Promising Pickford Sunderland's saving grace in slow start
It seemed like it would be one of those days for Tottenham at White Hart Lane last Sunday. Spurs laid siege to Sunderland’s goal in the opening 45 minutes, firing off 19 shots; an average of one every 2 minutes and 37 seconds. They huffed and they puffed, but no matter what, they couldn’t force a way past Jordan Pickford. It wasn’t until the hour mark that Spurs found their breakthrough. The Black Cats goal couldn’t handle any more of the pressure as a Papy Djilobodji error gifted Harry Kane with a simple tap in.
That goal could have seen Sunderland crumble but, while the outfielders struggled to match Spurs’ intensity, Pickford ensured the scoreline was kept as tight as possible to give the club a slim chance of an upset at White Hart Lane, with his fingertip stop to deny a curling Erik Lamela effort late on the pick of the saves. Indeed, his showing in north London, as frustrating as it was for the home support, yielded a WhoScored rating of 8.35 and with it, the man of the match award.
“It's early days in his Sunderland career but at the moment he's the one shining light in an already gloomy season,” said former Sunderland and Aberdeen goalkeeper and Sunderland Echo columnist David Preece. Indeed, Pickford is far and away Sunderland’s top rated player this season with a rating of 7.37. When last month it emerged the Black Cats would be without regular number one Vito Mannone for at least 12 weeks with an elbow injury, supporters needn’t have worried. Despite making only two top-flights starts last season, Pickford had shown enough to suggest he was worthy of regular game time.
His Premier League debut, incidentally, came at White Hart Lane in a 4-1 loss at Spurs. Without him in fine form once more, the north London side could have netted double figures. Pickford saved seven shots in the fixture back in January and went one better in the same fixture this season, producing eight, the joint-best return in a Premier League match so far. Only Tom Heaton (24) has made more saves than Pickford (20) in England’s top tier this term, despite making two fewer appearances than any other regular goalkeeper.
“I first saw Jordan play when he was on loan at Alfreton in the Conference. What struck me first was his confidence dealing with a barrage of high balls and crosses that came into his box. When I say he came for everything, I mean everything. In that particular game it became his undoing because he came for something right on the edge of the box and the striker beat him to it but he was unaffected, coming for the next ball from a long throw-in and setting off a quick counter,” Preece added.
With that in mind, his dominance of the box is vital for a Sunderland side that averages the least possession (38.4%) in the Premier League this season. That the Black Cats are allowing their opponents the ball more than any other side means Pickford’s commanding presence between the sticks increases his importance with only Lukasz Fabianski (1.4) and Heurelho Gomes (1.2) averaging more punches per game in England’s top tier this term (1). With that in mind, and Sunderland sitting deeper than a number of teams, opponents will often look to test Pickford from distance, but even in this area he excels making more saves from long shots (12) than any other Premier League goalkeeper this season. While Sunderland have shipped nine goals this term, that figure would have been higher had Pickford not been in such fine form already.
Only Maarten Stekelenburg (81.8%) has a better save success rate than Pickford (80%) of shotstoppers to make three or more league appearances this campaign. Sunderland may have accrued just one point from the three league games the young goalkeeper has started this season, but it’s without question that David Moyes’ side look doomed at this point in time had Pickford not impressed. What’s startling still is his age, with Pickford still just 22. Given the longevity of goalkeepers’ careers, there is without doubt more to come from the Englishman.
With this, Preece went on to add: “His confidence, communication skills and direction to the players in front of him belie his inexperience at this level. As to how far he can go, he's already progressing through the England youth ranks and, so long as he can secure himself as Sunderland's first choice this season, and should the team survive in the Premier League, Sam Allardyce will have no choice but to include him in his squads.” There is, of course, ample competition for a place in the England side, with Allardyce afforded the luxury of being able to call on Joe Hart, Fraser Forster, Jack Butland - upon his return to fitness - and Tom Heaton between the sticks.
Yet, with Pickford bursting onto the scene and the Sunderland man routinely called into action - the Black Cats are conceding the second most shots per game (18.2) in the Premier League this season - he’s heavily worked for Moyes’ team, which will only improve his shotstopping capability. However, while he’s gaining ample experience, this could have an adverse effect on his development, with Preece concluding: “What he doesn't need is to become a keeper embroiled in annual relegation battles, scarring him enough to hinder his progress.”
Having earned a place in WhoScored’s 2015/16 Championship Team of the Season as a result of a profitable loan spell with Preston, Pickford is proving that he is deserving of regular Premier League action. Sunderland’s chances of consolidating a top-flight spot could yet increase significantly with the youngster between the sticks, provided he can maintain his consistency. As one of the most promising goalkeepers in the country, Pickford is without doubt the the beacon of hope at the Stadium of Light.
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