Dean Henderson is pushing for the Number 1 spot in Tuchel’s England set up
Dean Henderson was the hero of Crystal Palace’s FA Cup triumph and could be given an opportunity by Thomas Tuchel for England.
In many ways, Crystal Palace’s historic win over Manchester City at Wembley last month will be remembered as ‘The Dean Henderson Final.’ Eberechi Eze might have scored the winning goal as the Eagles won the FA Cup for the first time, but the 28-year-old goalkeeper was very much the main character of the story.
Henderson could, and perhaps should, have been sent off in the first half for handling the ball outside his box. As it was, he went on to make countless saves to stop City from finding the net, revelling in his moment as the first Palace goalkeeper to lift a major piece of silverware in the club’s 119-year history.
Next summer, Henderson could be part of another team aiming to end its long wait for a trophy. The Palace shot-stopper is part of Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for the World Cup qualifier against Andorra and the friendly against Senegal with Henderson openly targeting the number one jersey.
Of course, Jordan Pickford has been England’s first-choice goalkeeper for the last seven years. The Everton man has had his critics, but has always found his best form at international level, growing into a role as a leader within the England dressing room. It’s now difficult to envisage the Three Lions without Pickford between the posts.
And yet Henderson has shown enough to suggest he could dislodge Pickford in the future. The 28-year-old has improved greatly over the past two seasons and is a key member of a Crystal Palace team on a steep upward trajectory under Oliver Glasner. If Tuchel is looking to evolve England, Henderson could be part of that process.
“You can only go off my form this season – I am up there with the best in the league goalkeepers wise,” said Henderson when asked about the level he has reached with his performances for Crystal Palace this season. “Of course I know my level. The reality is that the only way you get seen is producing it week in, week out and I have been doing that.”
Henderson has been mentioned as a potential England number one for years. Many expected he would become the first-choice goalkeeper at Manchester United. Ole Gunnar Solskjær once predicted that Henderson would have the number one jersey at Old Trafford for a long time to come.
Ultimately, though, Henderson saw his future away from United, refusing to play for Erik ten Hag to force through a loan move to Nottingham Forest before joining Palace for £15m in the summer of 2023. Henderson still had to earn his place at Selhurst Park, but now finally looks like the player many envisaged he would be when he first broke through as a youngster.
In the spirit of experimentation, Tuchel could feasibly give Henderson an opportunity to show his worth as an England player against either Andorra or Senegal. The German coach has a duty to explore all options before the 2026 World Cup and this could be a convenient moment to assess the Palace number one before the stakes get higher closer to the tournament.
Statistically, Pickford still has the upper hand on Henderson in several categories. The Everton goalkeeper had a save percentage of 73.5% this season, ranking him among the Premier League’s top three shot-stoppers, while Henderson’s percentage stood at just 67.1%, making him 13th.
Only Mark Flekken and Aaron Ramsdale made more saves over the course of the 2024/25 campaign than Pickford. This was partly due to Everton struggling at the wrong end of the table for so much of the season, but Pickford played an important role in pushing the Toffees towards mid-table safety.
Henderson isn’t the only goalkeeper with their sights set on Pickford’s place. Burnley’s James Trafford is arguably the brightest young goalkeeper in English football right now and could be on the move this summer amid links with Manchester United, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur. The 22-year-old is developing quickly and recorded 29 clean sheets in 45 games in the Championship this season.
Then there’s Nick Pope and Ramsdale, both of whom have had a taste of international football, but have yet to truly establish themselves within the England set-up. Pope, however, will have a platform to showcase his quality in the Champions League next season while Ramsdale could move on from Southampton.
In Henderson, though, Tuchel has a goalkeeper with genuine self belief that he can become one of the best in the world, not just in English football. Crystal Palace supporters now sing about their goalkeeper becoming England number one and it’s not impossible Tuchel could heed their advice.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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