Pickford: Everton will not be relegated

Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford is confident the Premier League strugglers will move clear of the relegation zone.

The Merseyside club are 18th in the table and adrift of safety on goal difference as they prepare to welcome Watford to Goodison Park Sunday.

It has been a forgettable season for Everton so far following the sacking of Ronald Koeman last month, but recruit Pickford believes the club’s fortunes will change.

“It’s not been ideal but we are not far away from winning games,” said the 23-year-old.

“We’re not a club that is going to be in the bottom three for long I’d say. It’s just that the luck hasn’t come our way yet.

“It’s a totally different scenario for myself from last season. I think one win will get us to 13th or something in the league.

“Then that one win can become back-to-back wins, and that is where the confidence grows, and it starts Sunday.”

“We have had a bad lot of games. I love playing games week in week out, but it has been a change with the Europa League. That may have affected us,” Pickford continued.

“But we can’t be making excuses. We have to just move forward, dig in and get the win.”

He added: “You have [fellow summer signing Wayne] Rooney, you have a lot of people who have been successful. The senior pros have all been successful in their careers, and that is where they help us.

“And then that is when the young lads become big characters, when they wear their hearts on their sleeves in the games. We won’t be struggling – it will only make us go forward and get the wins that we need.”