Jordan Pickford’s water bottle with details of Switzerland penalty takers goes viral after accurate prediction in Euro 2024 QF win
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford was the hero for England once again as they beat Switzerland on penalties to book their place in the Euro 2024 semi-finals on Sunday. Pickford denied Manuel Akanji from the spot as the Three Lions eked out a 5-3 win in the shootout. They reached their third major tournament semi-final under Gareth Southgate.
With the scores locked at 1-1 after 120 minutes of action in Dusseldorf, Pickford started his mind games early in the shootout to get under the opponents’ skin. He forgot his water bottle far from the goal before Akanji’s penalty, then walked back to collect it to add to the tension.
The Everton shot-stopper then guessed the Manchester City defender’s timid effort correctly, diving to his left to give England an early advantage. However, what has caught fans’ attention on social media is Pickford’s water bottle. It had details on the Swiss penalty takers and advise on which direction to dive.
“Jordan Pickford had ‘Akanji - Dive Left’ written on his water bottle which he went on to save during the penalty shootout. Pickford producing penalty heroics once again,” a post by SPORTbible on Instagram was captioned.
According to Opta, the save was the fourth (out of 14) that Jordan Pickford has made in a penalty shootout at a major tournament. That is twice as many as all other England goalkeepers combined from 1990 to 2012 (two in 36).
The Everton custodian’s previous saves include Carlos Bacca’s effort in the shootout against Colombia in the 2018 FIFA World Cup Round of 16. He also saved Andrea Belotti and Jorginho's penalties in the Euro 2020 final against Italy.
“I enjoy the pressure” - Jordan Pickford ahead of Euro 2024 quarter-final vs Switzerland
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford had fired a warning to Switzerland ahead of their Euro 2024 quarter-final clash in Dusseldorf. He had said that he thrives under the pressure of a penalty shootout.
Pickford was one of the scorers in England's penalty shootout win against Switzerland in the third-place playoff of the inaugural UEFA Nations League in 2019. The Three Lions won 6-5 following a 0-0 draw after extra time.
Reflecting on that win, Pickford said (via The Sun):
“History of winning major tournaments shows that you've got to go into extra time, maybe win a penalty shoot-out. It was the Nations League for third place and the bronze medal but you've got to learn from them experiences and take them experiences into major tournaments.”
He added:
“It was a good feeling back then to get them experiences under our belt. I enjoy the pressure. You're playing on the biggest stage in football and I'm loving it.”
England will take on the Netherlands in the Euro 2024 semi-final in Dortmund on Wednesday, July 10. Spain and France are the other semi-finalists.