No English goalkeeper has been close to the world-class category in ten years with James Trafford the latest hope as Jordan Pickford hits his ceiling
Joe Hart, Jordan Pickford and James Trafford: the past, present and possibly future of English goalkeeping(Image credit: Future)
For a period of four to five seasons, Joe Hart was an elite goalkeeper who, at various stages, was considered world-class. However fleeting his peak level was, he entered world-class echelons at various periods between 2010 and 2015.
This was the last time an English goalkeeper entered the ‘elite’ category. In February this year, Joe Hart announced that this season will be his last as a footballer.
In truth, his career has never recovered from the moment Pep Guardiola dropped him in August 2016. It marked the end of a disastrous summer for Hart, following England's infamous Euro 2016 exit to Iceland.
VIDEO: The HUGE Problem England Need To Solve Before The Euros
He has since played for five different clubs: loans at Torino and West Ham, two seasons with Burnley, a season as backup GK at Spurs, before enjoying an Indian summer with Celtic where he’s won two league titles and three cups.
He also played 23 times in Europe for The Bhoys, taking his tally to 95 games in European competition. For comparison, of Gareth Southgate’s three likely goalkeeper picks for Euro 2024, Jordan Pickford has played three times in the Europa League, Aaron Ramsdale has played once in the Champions League and three times in the Europa League, while Sam Johnstone has never appeared in Europe.
Of Hart’s England successors, Pickford has been the standout. Butland, Ruddy, Forster, Heaton, Pope, McCarthy, Henderson, Johnstone and Ramsdale have all failed to challenge the Everton man for the England No.1 shirt seriously and he has played every minute for England at the last three major tournaments.
Jordan Pickford is expected to play every minute for England at Euro 2024 having played in every game in the last three major tournaments (Image credit: Getty Images)
Now 30 years old and with 60 caps to his name, only Peter Shilton has more clean sheets for England at major tournaments (10 in 20 games) with Pickford producing nine in 19 games.
If the recent analysis of England by FourFourTwo’s resident tactical expert, Adam Clery, is anything to go by, Pickford is in for a busy summer.
Against Brazil, England were as defensively open as they’ve ever been in Southgate's eight-year tenure. According to The Athletic, the Three Lions gave up seven big chances in the game at Wembley: more than they did in the entirety of the 2022 World Cup (six) and Euro 2020 (five).
Their super-aggressive press will put massive pressure on countries who like to play out from the back (i.e. all the best ones) but will also leave massive space at the back. Any teams at Euro 2024 who can bypass England’s frontline and midfield, will find acres of room behind their high line, placing pressure on Pickford.
The Everton keeper may not be world-class, but his role for Southgate’s England is defined by his range of passing which offers numerous options in possession and could be vital in the group stages in Germany where England will need to pick locks vs Serbia, Denmark, and Slovenia.
Jordan Pickford during Euro 2020 (Image credit: Getty Images)
The next GK off the rank
In February 2015, Joe Hart saved a penalty from Lionel Messi in a Champions League Last of 16. After the return leg vs Barcelona Messi described Hart as a "phenomenon" following his performance in which he made 10 saves during the match, a record for an English goalkeeper in the Champions League.
In his next match, a 3–0 win against West Bromwich Albion, he reached 100 Premier League clean sheets. Hart ended 2014/15 season by keeping a clean sheet against Southampton in his 300th appearance for Manchester City to win the Premier League Golden Glove award for the fourth time.
His performances during 2015 earned him a nomination for the UEFA Team of the Year. Manuel Neuer pipped him. It was arguably the peak of Hart’s career, and the drop off for him and English goalkeeping in general has been steep ever since that memorable year.
Joe Hart arguably reached world class levels at various stages between 2010 and 2015 (Image credit: Getty Images)
Ahead of England’s friendly match vs Belgium, 21-year-old James Trafford was promoted from the U-21 squad to replace the injured Sam Johnstone. Trafford shone last season on loan at Bolton Wanderers from Manchester City and was bought by Burnley for £19 million pounds in the summer.
But this season has been extremely challenging for the young keeper. Burnley are struggling badly for survival and have been picked apart at times. He’s kept just two clean sheets and been the joint-fourth busiest keeper in the division.
Ask a casual Premier League football fan for their opinion on Trafford and they may say he’s got a mistake in him. But according to the Premier League’s Stat Centre he’s only made one mistake this season that’s led to a goal.
James Trafford and Conor Bradley have both made the leap into the Premier League from loan spells at Bolton last season (Image credit: Getty Images)
The same casual observer might also assume Trafford, the quintessential, ball at your feet, passing out from the back, goalkeeper wouldn’t be one for long balls. But he hits an average 21.64 of them per game, only 0.93 behind the keeper who plays the most ‘launched’ passes in the league: Jordan Pickford.
Pickford’s long balls have a 40.5 per cent accuracy, placing him in the top 26 per cent of goalkeepers in the league. Concerningly, only 22.8 per cent of Trafford’s are accurate, placing him in the bottom five per cent.
Jumping from League One to Premier League was always going to be a steep learning curve for Trafford, and so it has proved. He has undoubted qualities with the ball at his feet, and in the era where more and more football managers are opting for a goalkeeper more adept at pinging the ball around than they are keeping it out of the net, Trafford fits that bill.
Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that Burnley and Everton’s keepers are lumping it long more than most, but this isn’t what is being asked of them at international level. Perhaps domestically, both keepers are square pegs in round holes who might thrive at clubs operating at the top end of the table and in Europe.
The young goalkeeper was benched by Vincent Kompany before the international break and Burnley won their first game since before Christmas. Trafford’s debut season has certainly been character-building, and while he has shown the signs he can become a serious goalkeeper at the highest level, can he kiss the sky like Joe Hart did? It feels like a long road right now.
A former goalkeeper, Ketch joined FourFourTwo as Deputy Editor in 2022 having worked across ChronicleLive, LeedsLive, Hull Daily Mail, YorkshireLive, Teesside Gazette and the Huddersfield Examiner as a Northern Football Editor. Prior to that he was the Senior Writer at BBC Match of the Day magazine. He has interviewed the likes of Harry Kane, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Gareth Southgate and attended two World Cup finals and a Champions League final. He has been a Newcastle United season ticket holder since 2000 and has an expensive passion for collecting classic football shirts.
