Micah Richards has criticised Jordan Pickford and dubbed the England star a ‘nervous wreck’ following their 2-1 defeat to Greece on Thursday night.
Greece were impressive throughout the showdown, with the Three Lions toiling in Lee Carsley’s third match in charge.
Vangelis Pavlidis put the visitors ahead in the 49th minute, only for Jude Bellingham to draw England level with just three minutes left on the clock.
But Pavlidis struck again at the death to give Greece a win on an emotional night following the tragic death of George Baldock.
Micah Richards has opened up on England after their shock 2-1 defeat to Greece at Wembley on Thursday night
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Several players underwhelmed for England as they crashed to defeat.
Phil Foden continues to struggle at international level, Cole Palmer was wasted in a deeper role and Trent Alexander-Arnold looked unconvincing at right-back.
And Richards has now taken aim at Pickford, dubbing the Everton goalkeeper a ‘nervous wreck’.
“Pickford was like a nervous wreck,” he told the Rest is Football podcast.
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“It set the tone for everything. I was like ‘come on Pickford, I’m your biggest fan but calm down please.'”
Pickford has been a regular for England over the years, regularly starring at major tournaments during Gareth Southgate’s time in charge.
However, he’s endured a difficult start to the season with the former Sunderland star conceding 13 goals as his club lost their first four Premier League matches.
Richards isn’t the only pundit to criticise Pickford, with Roy Keane also condemning the England star for his shaky display.
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Analysing Pickford’s performance in the first half, the former Manchester United, Celtic and Nottingham Forest star said: “That spreads a message throughout the team – the lack of concentration levels, the lack of urgency.”
The defeat represents a hammer blow for Carsley and his aspirations of managing England on a permanent basis.
Speaking after the defeat, the 50-year-old admitted he was frustrated by the result.
And he also aired his thoughts that Greece were superior as they left the capital with all three points.
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Micah Richards has dubbed Jordan Pickford a ‘nervous wreck’ after the goalkeeper struggled in England’s defeat to Greece
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“I think we were probably second best for a lot of tonight. It is disappointing,” he said.
“You are going to get setbacks and it’s important we respond well now against Finland.
“It was disappointing with the quality we have got. If you look at all of the goals tonight, they are all from mistakes.”
On his decision to not use a senior, recongised striker at the start of the match he added: “We tried something different. We tried to overload midfield and play a little differently.
Micah Richards feels Jordan Pickford needs to ‘calm down’ after England’s recent defeat to Greece
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“It is something we experimented with and it was disappointing it didn’t come off.
“It’s a case of trying again now. It is definitely an option.
“When you have someone of Harry Kane’s quality it rules that out because of the goals he gets for us and how important he is for the team. We tried something tonight and we have got the ability in the group to do that.
“It is so important we gain promotion but we tried something different.”
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