Jordan Pickford breaks silence after England heartbreak with 'inspired' message

Jordan Pickford has responded to England's heart-breaking World Cup exit, stating that inspiring the next generation of players is something he 'buzzes off'. The Everton goalkeeper kept two clean sheets from six appearances before the Three Lions crashed out at the semi-final stage to Argentina. At 32, it could have been his final World Cup for the national team and a part of his public claim to the tournament could indicate at his final decision. He wrote to Instagram : "Putting on the England shirt will always be one of the greatest honours of my life Football has a way of bringing people together like nothing else, and seeing the scenes of support and celebration back home and across the world meant everything to us. FOLLOW OUR EVERTON FC FACEBOOK PAGE! Latest EFC news and analysis from via the Liverpool Echo’s dedicated FB page "Knowing we’ve inspired the next generation is something I buzz off. Thanks for backing us We didn’t get the ending we wanted, but we’ll learn, we’ll grow, and we’ll be back." Declan Rice, Marc Guehi and Jordan Henderson were among the England stars responding in the replies. It was a mixed tournament for Pickford, and while he was particularly impressive in the win over Mexico, that was followed by a shaky performance against Norway and criticism for conceding Argentina's equaliser. Enzo Fernandez's long-range effort wasn't quite in the corner, with several pundits believing that Pickford should have saved it. Roy Keane said: "I think if you look at it, I think he was one of them ones. He was kind of leaning to see it. We've always said Pickford, is Pickford really going to be producing amazing saves? He's been very good for England. Obviously very good for Everton. But is he really a top-class goalkeeper?" Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville also thought that the Toffees shot-stopper should have done better but many others have criticised the England players for failing to close down the shot in the first place. Jude Bellingham was inches away from blocking his effort and upon seeing a replay of the goal, he appeared to bemoan that "it was in the middle of the goal". Pickford could do nothing to stop Lautaro Martinez's close-range header, though, which saw his fifth tournament end in disappointment. At full-time, he was spotted in tears while being consoled by Dean Henderson. The Crystal Palace keeper replaced Pickford for the Bronze game against France, which ended 6-4 to England. Earlier in the tournament, Nathan Patterson was eliminated in the group stages with Scotland while Senegal duo Idrissa Gueye and Illiman Ndiaye suffered a brutal exit to Belgium in the last-32.