Jordan Pickford marked his return to the England starting XI with a clean sheet as the Three Lions demolished Croatia 7-0 in Rijeka on Saturday.
The Everton goalkeeper was restored by Thomas Tuchel after James Trafford started against Spain and Czechia. James Garner also featured from the bench, while Jarrad Branthwaite remained an unused substitute.
England were four goals ahead by half-time through Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka. Kane and Saka struck again after the break before Morgan Rogers completed England’s biggest-ever Nations League victory late on.
Pickford and Garner get England minutes
Pickford was largely a spectator as England dominated, although he made an important early intervention when he raced from his goal to beat Ivan Perisic to the ball.
Mateo Kovacic later provided England with a scare when he went around Pickford but somehow failed to score. The Everton goalkeeper was called upon again in stoppage time, saving a Perisic effort to preserve his clean sheet.
Garner was introduced after 70 minutes, replacing Alex Scott and collecting another 20 minutes at senior international level. His appearance followed the second-half opportunity he received against Spain earlier in the international window.
Branthwaite stayed on the bench after making a late appearance in the Spain defeat. The centre-back will hope for another opportunity when England complete the international window against Czechia at Wembley on Tuesday.
For David Moyes, the Everton news was positive. Pickford and Garner both came through the evening without any apparent problems, while Branthwaite avoided adding another game to his workload.
The trio’s involvement can be followed in our Everton international duty tracker.
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