England vs Italy: Jack Butland to start in goal as battle for World Cup 2018 spot heats up
Stoke keeper will hope to impress at Wembley on Tuesday as much as rival Jordan Pickford did in Amsterdam last Friday
JACK BUTLAND will step into the firing line against Italy for the next stage of the most open fight ever to become England’s World Cup keeper.
The Stoke stopper saw Everton’s Jordan Pickford, 24, shine when the Three Lions beat Holland 1-0 in Amsterdam last Friday.
And England boss Gareth Southgate insists he is unsure of who his No1 in Russia will be.
Butland, 25, insists he is thriving on the challenge as he takes on the Azzurri, who failed to qualify for the World Cup, at Wembley on Tuesday
But long-time first-choice Joe Hart, 30, and Burnley discovery Nick Pope, 25, are also in the squad.
Southgate said last week of his summer options between the sticks: “I know who it would be if we played tomorrow but I think we’ve still got plenty of football to be played.
“It is a very tight call at the moment because there is four guys in the squad who have justifiable claims for different reasons.”
The Mail report Butland as claiming the battle for a place is an inspiration, not a burden.
He said: “It’s a good thing isn’t it, having competition? I enjoy it.
“Training between all of us is extremely intense.
“Obviously, it’s one we’re all trying to take for ourselves but ultimately whoever deserves it, whoever the manager feels, will get it and we’re all trying to do our bit to make sure it’s us.
“I think that’s a great way to go into a World Cup, the fact not knowing who it is yet shows the competition is great.
“Whoever it will be is going to be coming off a battle, which is what we want.”
The Three Lions have just two more warm-up games after Tuesday.
They play Nigeria at Wembley on June 2 and Costa Rica at Leeds’ Elland Road five days later.
