How Everton Players Fared on the International Stage
By Marley Pope
Jordan Pickford-England and Vitaly Mykolenko-Ukraine
England’s and Blues number one Jordan Pickford played both matches, earning two wins over Italy 2-1 and Ukraine 2-0. Italy’s goal from debutant Mateo Retegui gave Pickford no chance, and that was Italy’s only shot on goal all match.
England retained nearly 60 percent possession versus Ukraine, and Pickford faced only three shots, none of them which were on goal. Everton teammate Vitaly Mykolenko started for Ukraine’s only match of the window and was subbed off in the 65th minute for Eduard Sobol of Strasbourg.
Myko had the most tackles in the match (2) and added five clearances and 3/5 ground duels won. The three lions sit atop Group C with six points, while Ukraine has work to do sitting tied for last next to Malta with zero points. Both Pickford and Mykolenko have started at least 25 of Everton’s 28 premier league matches, but Myko has been benched for defender Ben Godfrey in the last two matches.
He will look to return to the team and earn his spot back in the starting lineup. We have seen flashes from the young Ukrainian, but there are too many instances where he does not offer enough going forward, in addition to questionable decisions on the back end. Pickford is one clean sheet away from tying his total from last campaign at seven, and he will need to be at his best to keep Everton above the red line.