Sunderland goalkeeper Jordan Pickford has insisted that he will evaluate his future following the England’s Under-21s bid to lift the European Championship this summer.
The shot-stopper will fly out with his teammates on Monday ahead of their crunch clash against reigning champions Sweden on Friday.
Pickford was one of the standout performers for Sunderland alongside Jermaine Defoe last term, but this was not sufficient to keep the Black Cats in the Premier League for yet another campaign. The Wearside outfit had been playing with relegation over the past few years, but this year was not to be theirs after they failed to gather a winning run in the backend of the season.
The 23-year-old earned his maiden call-up to the senior England squad earlier in the season, and the Black Cats graduate admits that he would like to stay put in the top flight in order to better his international hopes. However, any further decision on the future could be made after Euro 2017 which Pickford is determined to win with the Under-21 side.
He said, via The Independent: “It’s a hard one. I feel like I am proven in the Premier League but I have spoken to my agent and told him that I just want to concentrate on the Euros and be the best I can be. I’ll see where it takes me. You have to take (the transfer speculation) as a compliment. I have just got to keep concentrating on myself. I have had a good season but it is about doing it next season, the season after that and then the one after that.”
Premier League club Everton are said to be leading the chase for the highly-rated goalkeeper, but the Toffees will still have to cough up a £30m sum in order to prize him away from the Stadium of Light. Pickford produced a number of memorable performances during the previous season, but he could be fondly remembered for the 11 saves he made during Sunderland’s 2-0 defeat to Arsenal in the penultimate game of the season.