Everton immediately hit back at Lee Dixon after he made a comment insinuating that the Toffees weren’t a big club when speaking about England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Dixon, who is best known for his time with Arsenal between 1988 and 2002, was on co-commentary duty alongside Sam Matterface for ITV Sport during the broadcast of England’s World Cup qualifier against Latvia in Riga on Tuesday.
And during a conversation about England goalkeeper Pickford, who made his 80th Three Lions appearance against the Baltic nation, Dixon questioned why the 31-year-old hasn’t moved on to a “bigger club” despite his exploits with the national team.
The shot stopper has never played for a traditional ‘big six’ club despite being England’s undisputed number one since his first cap against Germany in November 2017.
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The former Sunderland man has also represented England at four major tournaments - the 2018 and 2022 World Cups as well as Euro 2020 and 2024.
Pickford is adored by Everton supporters and has reportedly agreed terms of a new deal with the Merseyside club, according to BBC Sport.
Of course, several Everton supporters took a dim view of Dixon’s comments and took to social media to offer their take.
One said: “Only Lee Dixon could wonder why Pickford doesn't play for a bigger club while also insinuating he's not good enough to play for a big club.”
Another added: “Have I just heard Lee Dixon having a go at Everton and Jordan Pickford again?”
While a third claimed: “Nice for Lee Dixon to finally give Pickford some praise... Just a shame it came in the same breath as basically saying he should leave."
As a fourth commented: “Hilarious listening to Lee Dixon say why hasn’t Pickford moved to one of the ‘bigger clubs'. The same fella who’s been hammering him every time he plays for England.”
Unexpectedly, the Premier League side then posted on X listing their major honours, accompanied by the words “Everton FC - a big club: past, present & future” before tagging Dixon’s X account to the delight of those in the comments sections.
Why has Jordan Pickford remained at Everton?
Since joining from Sunderland in 2017, the Mackem has made 329 appearances for the Toffees and is one of the club's most important players. He has been integral in keeping them in the Premier League in recent years and kept 12 clean sheets in 38 appearances last term – the second most behind David Raya and Matz Sels on 13.
And despite tentative links with clubs in the upper echelons of the league, such as Spurs and Manchester United, he has remained loyal to Everton. But why?
According to BBC Sport’s Giulia Bould, “Pickford sees Everton as his home, and there is intent on both sides for him to finish his career at Hill Dickinson Stadium with a new deal being discussed”.
The player's young family are settled in the area, and it appears that he will remain at the Toffees for the foreseeable future.
Topics: Everton, Jordan Pickford, Football, Premier League, England
Luke Davies