The England number one appears to be a leading candidate to replace Hugo Lloris
Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly stepped up their search to find a suitable successor to Hugo Lloris, following an update regarding the club’s apparent interest in Everton goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford.
What’s the latest on Pickford to Tottenham?
According to Football Transfers, the Lilywhites have made contact with the Merseyside outfit over a possible summer swoop for the England international, with finding an heir to Lloris seemingly a real priority with the veteran Frenchman having just a year left to run on his existing deal.
The report suggests that the north Londoners have been ‘following’ the 29-year-old over an extended period of time and are now ready to make their move, albeit with Daniel Levy and co said to have concerns over meeting the reported £40m transfer fee.
The piece also adds that the former Sunderland stopper – who only recently signed a new long-term deal at Goodison Park – is keen to know who Tottenham’s new manager will be and whether international colleague Harry Kane is set to stay at the club, prior to agreeing to any summer switch.
Would Pickford be a good signing for Tottenham?
If recent transfer dealings with the Toffees are anything to go by, it could well prove an awful mistake if Levy is to make a move for Pickford this summer, with Spurs having only recently been stung by their £60m capture of Richarlison from Goodison.
After previously scoring ten goals and providing five assists in his final league season at Everton during the 2021/22 campaign to secure their survival, the Brazilian has since been unable to replicate that impact at N17, having scored just once and registered only four assists in the top-flight in 2022/23.
Those woes – which saw the 25-year-old net just a further two goals in Europe and in domestic cup competitions – have unsurprisingly led to notable criticism, with talkSPORT pundit Tony Cascarino stating that the mercurial forward “has been a joke this year”, due to his drab form.
The fear will be then that the signing of Richarlison’s ex-teammate – Pickford – could well lead to a repeat scenario, with the 6 foot 1 ‘keeper also potentially having the ability to underwhelm if he is to make the move to the capital this summer.
While the experienced asset did only recently prove integral to the Toffees’ successful relegation fight – having been described as the “difference” between the other relegated clubs by pundit Gary Neville – the £125k-per-week man has been a “liability” at times in recent seasons, according to BT Sport’s Chris Sutton.
Also dubbed a “strange goalkeeper” who makes “too many errors” – in the words of Sutton – Pickford came under fire after his dismal display when Everton met Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium back in October, having given away a penalty for a foul on Kane, after initially fumbling Heung-min Son’s tame attempt on goal.
That “really poor mistake” – as per ex-Tottenham midfielder Jamie Redknapp – is an illustration of the stopper’s frustrating inconsistency, having also notably made two errors leading to goals in the Premier League in the most recent campaign.
Those shortcomings – as well as the tale of Richarlison – should have Levy thinking twice before making a move for Pickford this summer…
