28 December 2023 , 00:11
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Former Everton striker Andy Gray has laid into Jordan Pickford following the Toffees' defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday, claiming he was at fault for every goal.
Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez and Bernardo Silva were all on target for Pep Guardiola's side as they won 3-1 at Goodison Park, having fought back after winger Jack Harrison gave Everton the lead in the first-half.
Before Harrison's opener, Pickford an excellent double save to deny Alvarez and Matheus Nunes. However, he was eventually beaten in the 53rd minute by Foden, whose left-footed strike appeared to catch him by surprise.
City were then controversially awarded a handball after Pickford made a poor attempt to punch away a corner, with the ball dropping in the penalty area and eventually striking Amadou Onana's hand.
The England international then made a major error for City's third goal as he was quickly closed down by Alvarez, allowing Bernardo the opportunity to loft the ball into an empty net. And while Gray believes Pickford should have done better for all three goals, it was the goalkeeper's blunder for Bernardo's strike that he was particularly critical of.
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"It is a great finish," Gray said on beIN SPORTS when discussing the goal. "It is his [Pickford's] fault, there's no doubt about it. He can't expect [Jarred] Branthwaite to control that when he doesn't even expect it."
"It wasn't even for Branthwaite was it," added ex-Liverpool midfielder Jason McAteer. "His first touch was poor." Legendary striker Alan Shearer, however, believes Pickford was not at fault for City's opener as Foden's strike was simply too powerful.
Everton were beaten 3-1 by Manchester City on Wednesday (Naomi Baker/Getty Images)"Pickford was actually going to his right slightly and Foden puts his head down and hits it," he said while on commentary for Amazon Prime Video. "He can't get back across because there is too much power on the shot from Foden. Fantastic strike."
And Foden also suggested the strike caught Pickford off guard, explaining: "Maybe because I hit it so quick, I might have caught him by surprise, yeah. I'll have to see it back but I was delighted to see it hit the back of the net.
"I think we needed that first goal to give us momentum. After that, we blew them away and played tremendous football. I've had a good run of games. You know how much I like playing in the middle as well. Long may that continue."