Jordan Pickford was minutes away from breaking an England record that has stood since 1966 against Poland on Wednesday night.
The Everton keeper may have recently been criticised by pundits , but despite the questions surrounding him, the 27-year-old has produced consistently impressive performances, both for the Toffees and in an England shirt.
Having been instrumental in the country’s run to the Euro 2020 final this summer, Gareth Southgate’s side went into the game against Poland having kept 11 clean sheets in 2021, with Pickford involved in eight.
England equalled their most defensive shutouts in a calendar year against Andorra last weekend,and it was Pickford who was between the posts as the team looked to break the 55-year-old national record.
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The former Sunderland keeper looked to have kept Poland and Robert Lewandowski at bay, despite a late scare as he was closed down by Karol Swiderski, causing the keeper to run back towards his own goal after the ball.
However, a late Damian Szymanski header in added time grabbed a 1-1 draw and a dramatic point for Poland in their bid for World Cup qualification - while preventing Pickford from writing his name in the record books.
Despite the late heartbreak in Warsaw, however, the Blues keeper will get several chances to achieve the feat, with England set to play four more qualifiers in October and November, before the end of the year.
Pickford did also earn a small consolation prize, as he became the first goalkeeper to deny Bayern Munich striker Lewandowski from getting on the scoresheet so far this season.
The clinical forward had already scored 10 in six games prior to facing England, including three in his last two games for Poland with Pickford notably saving a looping effort from close range in the first-half.
