The similarities between Wayne Rooney and Jordan Pickford are striking. Both have played for Everton and England, with a shared love for their club and country. The mutual respect between the former teammates is evident in their recent in-depth chat on the Wayne Rooney Show.

Pickford and Rooney have played a combined 550 times for Everton and 202 times for England. Rooney holds the record for the most England appearances by an outfield player with 120, while Pickford recently broke the record for most consecutive clean sheets by a Three Lions goalkeeper. Rooney believes Pickford is on his way to becoming the best-ever goalkeeper in his position.

The prospect of ending 60 years of hurt for England's men's team this summer was high on the agenda. Pickford will be at the World Cup as the undisputed number one, while Rooney will be there as a pundit. "We need something as a nation to win," says Pickford, 32. "Any England ex-player... I don't think they'll ever be jealous. Everybody needs it, it's only going to push the England badge forward. It's football, it's going to make it grow."

He added, "We would be legends for life. When you've been so close it does hurt, but it's got to drive you. We've been so close to winning something for England, so we can take that leadership on and that experience on to bring it all together."

Pickford has played 82 times for England, having made his debut in a 0-0 draw against Germany in November 2017. He was first called up to the national squad 13 months earlier, as a late replacement for a World Cup qualifier in Slovenia, and at 22, he made an instant impression on Rooney by sitting next to him.