Deeney Slams Pickford After England's World Cup Opener; Maguire Defends Keeper

England swept aside Croatia 4-2 in their World Cup opener on Wednesday, but not everyone was singing from the same hymn sheet when it came to the performance at the back.

Harry Kane's penalty and a commanding header from the skipper had the Three Lions cruising early on, only for Martin Baturina and Petar Musar to haul the Croatians level before half-time. Thomas Tuchel's men regrouped impressively after the interval, with Jude Bellingham restoring their advantage down the right wing before Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford combined to seal the points late on.

Yet the defensive vulnerabilities on show—particularly in that opening 45 minutes—have caught the attention of pundits. John Stones and Ezri Konsa looked distinctly uncomfortable in the centre, whilst Reece James appeared far less commanding than usual on the right flank.

Troy Deeney, however, has zeroed in on a different culprit. Speaking to CBS Sports, the straight-talking analyst turned his guns on goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, who earned his 85th cap for England and has been a stalwart since his 2017 debut.

"To say the least, yeah," Deeney replied when asked if Pickford had contributed to England's disorganisation. "I don't really know the stats and all of that. I'm just saying what my eyes told me.

"I still think he should have saved the first one, that's my opinion. I think when you get a hand to it, it's got to be a solid hand and keep it out."

The former Watford striker painted a damning picture of Pickford's approach: shots from distance trickling through, constant demands on his outfield players, and a pattern of parrying balls away rather than commanding his area with authority.

"Every time he parries one, fouls someone, does whatever, he's like, 'Don't look at me!' We're trying to win a World Cup. That's why we're here. In my opinion, and respectfully Jordan, because you know I like you. We can't win it with that guy in goal. He doesn't give you any confidence."

Maguire takes a different view entirely. The Manchester United captain, appearing on The Rest is Football, offered a contrasting assessment of both Pickford's performance and Tuchel's tactical direction.

"I think Picks today was really calm. Really, really calm under pressure," Maguire said. He went on to explain Tuchel's approach, which he believes has been misread by some observers.

"I think tactically a lot of people looked at the squad he picked and thought they were going to sit in and play on the counter-attack but I thought it would be the opposite," Maguire explained. "I think we've got four lads in the back four who all want to build up.

"I think the two in central midfield want to take the ball. I think the wide wingers, he's big on pressure and counter-press. So I think we're going to build up but I think the flip side is we're going to press high and press in their half and I think we saw that today."

It's a stark difference of opinion between two respected voices on the state of Tuchel's England—and whether Pickford can be trusted to deliver on football's biggest stage.