Everton on verge of securing deal for Jordan Pickford, £30m fee accepted

Premier League outfit Everton are on the verge of securing a deal for Sunderland goalkeeper Jordan Pickford after a £30 million fee was agreed between the two clubs, according to Sky Sports.

The 23-year-old earned rave reviews last season despite being part of a Black Cats side that finished bottom of the Premier League, and thus saw their decade-long stint in the top-flight come to a rather meek end.

The England Under-21 international started 29 of their 38 league games, and although he was part of a backline that conceded 69 times under David Moyes, that tally would have been significantly higher were it not for Pickford’s heroics, with games against Tottenham, Hull, West Brom, and Bournemouth of particular note.

However, Sunderland’s relegation to the Championship made the task of keeping the shot-stopper remarkably difficult, and it may be a battle they are about to lose as reports suggest that Ronald Koeman’s Everton are close to sealing a deal for the 23-year-old.

The Toffees saw both Joel Robles and Maarten Stekelenburg endure frustrating and unconvincing campaigns between the sticks at Goodison Park, so much so that it’s difficult to tell exactly who is Koeman’s number one.

Yet there’s little doubt that Pickford would usurp both men in the pecking order given his sensational efforts for Sunderland last term, with it reported in The Daily Telegraph earlier today that the Merseyside outfit are ‘growing increasingly confident’ of securing a deal for the 23-year-old.

And with many touting him as the future England number one, he may well go on to become Everton’s first-choice shot-stopper for many years to come should the deal be completed over the coming weeks and months.