Jordan Pickford has been England's number one for a long time. But does he now have a rival in James Trafford?

James Trafford has made three appearances for England

Published9 hours ago

You have to go back 10 years to find a major tournament where Jordan Pickford was not starting in goal for England

The Everton goalkeeper has pretty much been England's number one since making his debut in 2017 - until now

Saturday's 3-2 Nations League loss to Spain saw Leeds' James Trafford make his competitive debut for the Three Lions as manager Thomas Tuchel signalled the battle to be number one is on

Pickford became England's highest appearance maker at World Cups, overtaking Peter Shilton when he started in England's 2026 quarter-final win over Norway

During Gareth Southgate's tenure there was not a natural goalkeeper to rival Pickford, and that looked to continue under Tuchel as Pickford started all but one of England's World Cup qualifiers and then every game in the summer

But it looks as though Pickford has finally got a rival in Trafford, with Tuchel saying that the pair get "two consecutive matches each" during this international break

Trafford has impressed since making his move to Leeds for a deal worth up to £45m