Euro 2020 qualifiers: 5 young stars who could be called up by England for October's fixtures

#4 Aaron Ramsdale

Could Aaron Ramsdale be the perfect backup for Jordan Pickford?

Jordan Pickford is undoubtedly England’s #1 goalkeeper right now, and even though he’s had the odd wobble at Everton, it’d be hard to shake him from the spot as he’s performed so well for England over the past two years – including helping them to two rare penalty shoot-out victories.

But the race to become Pickford’s back-up – likely earning a handful of caps in the process – is definitely tight right now.

The last England squad saw Southgate call up Nick Pope of Burnley and Tom Heaton of Aston Villa, but there are certainly other keepers waiting in the wings for one of those slots – and perhaps top of the list right now is Bournemouth’s Aaron Ramsdale. The 21-year old has been an ever-present for the Cherries thus far in an impressive run that’s seen them rise to 8th in the Premier League.

It is true that Ramsdale has conceded 12 goals thus far – not the best statistic given Pope, Heaton and fellow youngster Dean Henderson have let in less – but Ramsdale has also made the most saves this season of any English goalkeeper, with a total of 27 thus far.

He also ranks highly in terms of successful punches (5), successful throw outs (37) and is almost definitely the only keeper with an assist to his name!

Add in the fact that Southgate has traditionally favoured youth over experience when it comes to picking his squads – and Pope and Heaton are both far older at 27 and 33 respectively – and there’s definitely an argument for Ramsdale being called into the squad, even if he’s only a backup to Pickford.