World Cup 2018: Sweden 0-2 England - 5 Talking Points

#2 Arise, Jordan Pickford!

Jordan Pickford made a few vital saves for England in the second half

After the group stages, there were still question-marks over whether Jordan Pickford should be starting in the England goal ahead of Jack Butland. In the two knockout games, the Everton man has emphatically given an answer to those questions.

After a heroic night against Colombia in the penalty shootout, Pickford was a mere spectator throughout the first half, as Sweden failed to muster a shot on target, but in the second half, he was called into action a lot more and made three outstanding saves.

The first was off a Marcus Berg header from an Emil Forsberg cross. Berg had isolated himself with Ashley Young on the far-post and easily beat the wing-back and unleashed a header towards the bottom left corner, but Pickford sprung himself and got a strong left hand on it to paw it away.

The second one was an even better save. Berg brought down a cross from the left wing, and swivelled, before unleashing a fierce strike at goal, but Pickford stayed tall and rose to get a finger-tip on the shot and tip it over the goal.

John Guidetti should have scored late on to give the Swedes hope, but Pickford was having none of it, as he quickly got across his goal to get a strong hand on the shot.

Pickford's stock has risen throughout this tournament, and it is well-earned, with two strong performances in two of the biggest games of his life.