Jordan Pickford once again played a part as England beat Switzerland on penalties to advance to the semi-finals of Euro 2024, but it was his water bottle that caught people’s attention.
Pickford saved Switzerland’s first penalty from Manuel Akanji as he got down to make a smart stop, although Akanji’s effort was poor and lacked power.
It turned out to be the crucial save as no other penalties were missed in the remainder of the shootout.
England’s players are rightly receiving plaudits for their brilliant penalties, but a picture of Pickford’s water bottle has emerged on social media.
On Pickford’s bottle was a list detailing Switzerland’s penalty takers and the direction in which they go, with “dive left” written next to Akanji’s name.
This isn’t something new and Pickford has also done this with Everton and had success with it.
It has seemingly worked in Pickford’s favour again, but there’s always the chance if the opposition know they will change their mind and go in a different direction.
How much of a difference it makes is unknown but at the top level it’s about fine margins and you need every advantage you can get no matter how small.
‘AKANJI… DIVE LEFT’ ?#BBCEuros #Euro2024 #ENGSUI pic.twitter.com/dm0ZefjqxT
— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) July 6, 2024
water bottle of Jordan Pickford of England, which features details of the Switzerland penalty kick takers and the direction they go #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/4P6Y3HLlw4
— H (@HQpcrt) July 6, 2024
