Koeman praises Pickford's stellar Everton start

Everton boss Ronald Koeman heaped praise on new signing Jordan Pickford after the goalkeeper played a key part in Saturday's season-opening win over Stoke City. Wayne Rooney scored the only goal as the Toffees overcame a sluggish start to register a hard-earned 1-0 win at Goodison Park. The result would have been different had Pickford not produced a stunning stoppage-time save to deny Xherdan Shaqiri, leaping to his left to push the Swiss star's goal-bound drive around the post. Pickford's save preserved a clean sheet on his first Premier League appearance for Everton, a feat the 23-year-old also achieved on competitive debut in the Europa League. "We know we brought in a really good goalkeeper," Koeman told Sky Sports. "He dominated his area today, he's still young, and he had a great save on that [Shaqiri] shot. That's really important." Despite the victory, Koeman admitted his new-look side was affected by nerves against a determined Stoke. Hard @premierleague opener, nervous from our side. But the most important were the three points. Also a clean sheet! #Everton #EFC pic.twitter.com/0htIne3iuv — Ronald Koeman (@RonaldKoeman) August 12, 2017 The visitors created the better of the first-half openings before Rooney's goal swung the momentum firmly into Everton's favour. "It wasn't a good performance from our side," the Dutchman said. "But it's the first [game] that has maybe brought nerves to the team and maybe some of the new signings. "If you know that and you keep a clean sheet, you keep the three points at home, it's a perfect result."