Season › 2024-25 › Opinion › Talking Points Southall vs Pickford by Graham Mockford | 29/08/2025 11 Comments [Jump to last] Let me just start this post by stating my bona fides. I was a student in 1983. I saw every game for 4 years so I was very lucky. I was at Spurs in 1985 when Neville Southall made that save against Falco. I was at Hillsborough when he literally won the game on his own. The save from Varadi was the best save I’ve ever seen. But then, in 2017, we signed Jordan Lee Pickford. It’s fair to say it took him a while to settle down, the goal he conceded at Anfield was definitely the low point but, in the last 5 years, he’s been nothing short of exceptional. His stats are great but they don’t really don’t do him justice. We would not be a Premier League club without him. So it may be an unpopular opinion… but Jordan is the better keeper for me. He’s just played in a poorer side. Return to Talking Points index : Add your Comments » Reader Comments (11) Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer () Jack Convery 1 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:18:36 He does play in a poorer side and he's been brilliant. However, Neville is the better keeper. He was World No 1 when he played and worth many a point each season. It was real pity he never got to play in a World Cup or Euros, as that would have enhanced his reputation even further. Les Callan 2 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:20:17 No comparison Graham. Nev is number one. Greatest ever keeper. Les Callan 3 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:22:07 Oh and by the way Graham, you saw 4 of Nevs 19 seasons. Rob Hooton 4 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:25:10 Big Nev was my hero, I was goalkeeper for the school team and I modelled my bravery and much more on Southall. He’s a true great.Pickford has grown whilst he’s been here and is the only keeper we’ve had that comes close to Southall. If we can win a couple of trophies with Jordan then he can take place on the plinth with Neville - we’d all be over the moon if that happened! Southall still pips it for me, mainly because he played in a great team and won lots. He also helped us win the FA Cup in ‘95, he rolled back the years with some stunning saves in the final. Proper legend. Colin Glassar 5 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:39:58 Pickford has come on leaps and bounds but Neville was unique. The best goalie in the world at his peak.I still maintain that Georgie Wood was better than both of them. Mark Wynne 6 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:40:31 Nev hands down. Certainly the best British keeper at the time and since. Pickford is good, don’t get me wrong, but not really at the same level. I don’t even have him as the best since Nev, that honour I think has to go to Nigel Martyn. Lee Courtliff 7 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:45:18 I never saw the '80s, my first game was in 1990 and Nev was still a good keeper for us. Despite a dip in form around '93ish, he was massive during the '95 Cup winning season. But, even then you could tell he was coming to the end and I'll never forget a game against Wimbledon in '96 when he was glued to his line. We lost 4-2 and their keeper, Neil Sullivan, absolutely dominated his box and looked the far better keeper on the day. So, from what I've seen with my own eyes, Jordan Pickford is the best keeper we've ever had. Even though he does frustrate me at times and I absolutely hate the time-wasting (I know every keeper does it).I get the feeling that it's only a matter of time before the rest of the country wake up to how good he is and the Love-In will begin. Our imminent upturn in fortunes will change the narrative.And 15 years from now everyone will be wishing England had a keeper as good as Pickford was. Tommy Carter 8 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:45:36 Pickford is a tremendous goalkeeper. Without wanting to tempt fate - mistakes are few and far between either at Premier League or International level. The mistake in the derby was colossal but his ability to recover from that shows remarkable character. His excitable demeanour and lack of extreme height seem to act against him when it comes to public opinion. He’s arguably England’s greatest ever goalkeeper. And over the last couple of years in particular he has performed brilliantly with two notably world class performances against Liverpool and Chelsea that stand out. Big Neville however, was better. Robert Tressell 9 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:46:02 There’s a marked difference between pre and post back pass rule keepers. Very different skill set and role in the team. Makes it hard to judge / compare. Liam Mogan 10 Posted 30/08/2025 at 13:46:20 There's no debate here. Big Nev everyday and twice on Sundays. Christy Ring 11 Posted 30/08/2025 at 15:05:00 Pickford has been brilliant for Everton, but no keeper touches Big Nev, he was the best keeper in the World in his prime. Add Your Comments In order to post a comment, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site. » Log in now Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and Talking Points submissions across the site. How to get rid of these ads and support TW © ToffeeWeb