Ramsdale and Pickford will face each other on Monday.
When asked about Jordan Pickford's form 14 months ago, his praise for the goalkeeper revealed a bigger problem.
Pickford was at the mill in October 2020. He had been vilified by fans for injuring a teammate at a club, and after several errors at club level was then dropped by his boss.
The chance to back his number one was missed when he focused on his England performances instead of pushing him out.
It didn't sound like he was describing a healthy situation. The England picture looks different thanks to the form of a player named Ramsdale, who will face Pickford in the opposite goal on Monday.
Ramsdale has come through a test of character to overtake other competitors and emerge as Pickford's closest rival for the England jersey.
Ramsdale's emergence as the new kid on the block is good news for the World Cup as Dean Henderson is struggling for games and fitness at Manchester United.
Ramsdale's save againstLeicester was noticed by a wider audience.
Ramsey's journey has not been easy.
Ramsdale saved a free-kick by James Maddison earlier in the season, and Peter Schmeichel said it was the best save he had seen in years.
Ramsdale made his senior national debut against San Marino after the save, which had Mikel Arteta purring about his England chances. The only keepers with a higher save percentage are Edouard Mendy of the Blues.
Ramsdale's rise has come after a £24m summer move to the Gunners, a transfer which caused surprise to some fans as the keeper had suffered successive Premier League relegations with Bournemouth andSheffield United.
Nick Cox, who is head of Manchester United's academy and signed a 15-year-old Ramsdale after he was released byBolton, says the fact he has excelled at Emirates Stadium is testament to the strength of his character.
Cox told the radio station that they didn't think they'd signed a future England goalkeeper. We didn't know a lot about him, but he came on trial and we offered him a two-year scholarship.
He found it hard in the first year. We thought it might be difficult for him, so we got him to coach the younger academy groups. If this doesn't work out for him as a scholar, we need to prepare a future for him, so we got him coaching. He was a great coach, but he didn't know that was the reason.
He started to excel by the end of the first year because he was coming back after training and working on his own with the goalkeeper coach.
His career was one of overcoming setbacks and he was able to reach the top.
After moving to Bournemouth, he scored an own goal on his debut for the team that was demoted.
He had to deal with a price tag of over 18 million dollars at the helm of the club, which caused some fans to be negative towards him.
When he was released by Bolton, he found a way to improve, deal with setbacks and prove people wrong. He's enthusiastic, but also has a steely resilience.
Cox said that Ramsdale was intimidated by hanging out with players from bigger clubs and being unable to afford a coffee at the airport while on England youth duty.
The key part he played in keeping Wimbledon in League One while on loan was told by the assistant to Eddie Howe, who is now at Bournemouth.
He's an outstanding character and rises to the big occasion. The journey has not been easy for him.
Ramsdale will be looking to push Jordan Pickford for the England goalkeeper's jersey because of his attitude and confidence, according to Chris Wilder. The battle is wide open.
Pickford is a young goalkeeper, meaning the best could be yet to come for him.
Critics were silenced by Pickford's displays during Euro 2020.
Pickford benefits from a calmer approach.
Pickford will not give up the shirt.
The former goalkeeper's game has improved greatly over the past year thanks to additional guidance from Carlo Ancelotti. Pickford began to use a psychologist in 2020.
He was fun to be around when he was a kid. His lack of composure has led to mistakes on the pitch.
It was important for the keeper to stay calm and rely on his intuitions rather than thinking too much. Pickford said he takes inspiration from both Nadal and a golfer.
Pickford said that it was important to have a calm demeanor in the moment to make the right decision. I have been working on techniques to help you be calmer.
I think I am a little calmer in making decisions. It's about getting better and training your brain.
He made four mistakes which led to shots or goals in 31 appearances in the premier league last season. He has been error free since then.
Pickford has played for his country in major tournaments and at a major final, so he has the advantage of that, and it doesn't look like he will be replaced in the England goal soon.
He says he is used to the pressure.
He says he doesn't want to be comfortable. I want to be pushed.
Thankfully for England fans, it looks like the two keepers are going to push each other to be the number one.
