Jordan Pickford to return earlier to Everton

If Jordan Pickford were to sit out the mandatory three weeks that all players who went to the World Cup are, then he’d only return to Everton on Monday, five days before the Blues travel to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the first game of the Premier League season.

Instead, the Liverpool Echo reports the goalkeeper has chosen to return on Friday this week with a view to getting some playing minutes in Everton’s first and only Goodison Park preseason friendly, hosting Valencia on Saturday.

Pickford has been feted throughout the footballing world following his heroics at the World Cup for England, backstopping his nation to an unexpected semi-finals berth where they lost to equally surprising Croatia.

He will find a new manager in charge at the Blues after Marco Silva took over this summer, but there will be a familiar face backing him up after Maarten Stekelenburg signed a new two-year-deal to stay at the club.

There has been some transfer chatter, mostly in the media, around the player Everton signed last summer for £30million from Sunderland with Chelsea rumoured to be looking for a new goalie with Thibaut Courtois linked with a move to Real Madrid. The Toffees quickly responded by opening talks to give the star a new, improved deal.