What must Jordan Pickford do for Gareth Southgate to drop him?

It's 2020, not 2018. Stop using Jordan Pickford's performances at the World Cup as a reason for him still being the first-choice goalkeeper for England.

Two years on and his stock couldn't be lower. Last weekend against Brighton was one in a catalogue of unforced errors Pickford has been on the receiving end. His failure to catch the ball, and the conditions is not an excuse, cost Everton a goal. He parried a cross that he could've caught which almost resulted in another goal. Also, he bizarrely ended up under the ball when trying to deal with a cross.

Pickford is a self-confident fella but this seems to have developed into arrogance, which, in the case of Jack Grealish, can be a positive for your game or, as we've seen with Pickford, it is not. The quote of "I won't blunder like Alisson" is shared every time Pickford makes a mistake leading to a goal. The fortunes of the two goalkeepers are so different from one another. Alisson is the best goalkeeper in the world while Pickford is fighting for his life to be England and Everton number one. There are levels to this game.

One thing Pickford seems to have over Nick Pope or Dean Henderson - the established England deputies - is that he is better with his feet. Being confident on the ball as a goalkeeper is an integral part of the modern game and this does seem to be something Pope struggles with. However, for me, if a goalkeeper struggles with the basics like shot-stopping, handling or being a calming influence on the defence, they are a liability. Pickford is the smallest out of the three goalkeepers and is extremely erratic on his touchline.

It seemed as though his Brighton performance handed the England jersey to Nick Pope but he had an absolute shocker against Newcastle - more so than Pickford earlier that day - which may have given him a reprieve for at least a month. Dean Henderson is back-up at Manchester United so he doesn't deserve the shirt on merit. And if your basing who should be in goal on merit, it should be Pope.

Pope was named in the PFA Team of the Year but still can't get into the side. The argument appears to be that Pickford plays well for England, so why drop him? The national team should be decided by form, not past appearances. The World Cup is gone. The only way seems to be if he makes a mistake for England.