Jordan Pickford will have been keen to give Newcastle United fans 'two fingers' following his latest St James' Park appearance. That is the view of Sunderland legend Kevin Ball, who was in the stands for the Magpies' recent victory over Everton where Pickford was once again the target for taunts.
England's number one has become a pantomime villain on each visit to St James' Park since completing his move to Everton in 2017 following the Black Cats' relegation. The 28-year-old has been mocked with inflatable dinosaurs in recent years, with certain supporters going as far as dressing up in T-Rex costumes.
Pickford has previously revelled in the back-and-forth with the crowd, although this backfired when Rafa Benitez's side secured a comeback 3-2 victory in March 2019. The goalkeeper's last visit finished in a narrow defeat for the Toffees, with Miguel Almiron scoring the only goal of the game last month.
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Ball worked with Pickford during his time in Sunderland's academy, and was in attendance for the latest St James' Park encounter. The former club ambassador was 'unbelievably proud' of how the goalkeeper handled the 'abuse'.
Ball told i News: “It must have been unbelievably tough for him going through his career. I went to watch him at Newcastle. I went to see what he’s like.
“I won’t say I felt sorry for him getting that abuse – I’ve had it, not to the degree he has – but I would say I was unbelievably proud of his focus. I’m sure if they’d have won the game he’d have wanted to walk off and give everyone two fingers but he kept it together."
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