Jordan Pickford Lands In David James Top Five
Jordan Pickford is in David James’s Premier League top five. The former England No.1 said the Everton goalkeeper belongs there, and called him a perfect fit for both Everton and England. That view places Pickford alongside the league’s elite even without major honours at club level.
David James Backing
James did not hedge. "I think for consistency, yeah. It's funny actually when you ask about top five, I mean he's got to be up there." He went further too: "I'm a big fan of Jordan. I think Jordan is probably the anomaly in the Premier League."
He put the point plainly when weighing fit as much as raw quality. "I think with Jordan, when you see him playing for Everton, it's a perfect fit for Everton, but again this goes down to distribution and stuff." Then he added: "You put him in an England side which is completely different to Everton, he's a perfect fit for England."
Pickford And Everton
Pickford moved to Everton for £25 million in 2017 and has played more than 350 games for the club. He is now 32 years old and has been England's No.1 for the best part of a decade, with 84 caps since his senior international debut in 2017.
That record gives James’s praise real weight. Pickford has held his place through a long stretch in which England’s goalkeeping debate has shifted around him, yet he has stayed in the shirt and kept the role. James grouped him with David Raya, Alisson, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Emi Martinez as elite options in the league.
England And Group L
The England picture also adds another layer. Thomas Tuchel was preparing to steer England toward the 2026 World Cup, with the team due to open its group stage campaign against Croatia on Wednesday in Group L, alongside Ghana and Panama. England had not conceded a single goal in qualification.
Pickford has also said he wants to take a penalty if England get another shootout this summer, while Harry Kane will shoulder penalty duty for England for a couple of weeks at least. For a goalkeeper whose club résumé does not include European football, James’s ranking says the wider view has already changed: Pickford is being judged as one of the league’s top five, not merely as Everton’s long-serving No.1.
