Everton’s interests at this World Cup converge on a single day this week.
On Wednesday, Jordan Pickford and England face DR Congo in Atlanta, while Idrissa Gana Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye’s Senegal take on Belgium in Seattle a few hours later.
It is the first time in the tournament that three Everton players have faced knockout football on the same date, and the two routes that took them there were very different.
The Everton number one’s tournament has been one of quiet competence, with the odd Pickford moment thrown in for good measure. Three matches, two clean sheets, and a goalkeeper who has rarely looked stretched even when England have been below their best.
A 4-2 win over Croatia was followed by a goalless draw with Ghana and a routine 2-0 victory over Panama, a performance that moved Pickford to 15 World Cup caps — second only to Peter Shilton’s 17 in England’s history. Sky Sports’ breakdown of the tournament schedule confirms Wednesday’s match kicks off at 5pm BST, live on BBC One.
Potentially tricky night for England
DR Congo will likely be offer a different proposition. Sebastien Desabre’s side have reached the knockout stage for the first time in their history, finishing as the highest-ranked of the eight best third-placed teams after holding Portugal to a draw, losing narrowly to Colombia, and beating Uzbekistan.
Their route to the last-32 has been built on defensive discipline rather than the controlled possession of matches, with ESPN’s own preview noting that Newcastle’s Yoane Wissa, despite an injury-disrupted club season, has scored three times for DR Congo across the group stage, often being used as a lone striker.
England go into the game as clear favourites given the gap in squad depth, but a well-organised, experienced defensive unit has troubled bigger names than this before.
Senegal’s story has been rather more chaotic. Defeats to France and Norway left them needing a near-perfect final group game simply to survive, and they delivered exactly that.
Gana, who completed more passes than anyone else on the pitch against Iraq, helped set the platform with an early corner that led to Habib Diarra’s opener, before a red card and a five-goal second half — including a stoppage-time finish from Ndiaye off the bench — turned a must-win game into a statement of intent.
Our full breakdown of that performance and the Belgium tie ahead covers both players’ contributions in detail.
Big test for Senegal
Belgium arrive in Seattle unbeaten, having followed draws with Egypt and Iran with a comprehensive 5-1 win over New Zealand. Rudi Garcia’s side are built around Kevin De Bruyne’s creativity through the middle and Jeremy Doku’s pace from the right, and they will start as favourites against a Senegal side with less World Cup tournament pedigree.
But Senegal have already shown, in the space of that night in Toronto, that when up against it they are capable of responding.
For Evertonians, Wednesday brings an evening split between two contrasting stories — Pickford’s low-drama campaign continuing in the late afternoon, and Senegal’s trickier one reaching its biggest test yet a few hours later in Seattle.
Both Pickford’s individual review and DR Congo preview and the full World Cup tracker are being updated as the tournament continues.
By Wednesday night, Everton will know considerably more about how deep their presence at this World Cup is going to run, and when these three players will be returning to pre-season training.
