Boxing ace Bellew hits back at Lee Dixon jibe

TONY Bellew has told Lee Dixon to mind his own business in an impassioned defence of Jordan Pickford.

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Comments on TV by the former Arsenal player, 61, at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday prompted the club to hit back.

He questioned why Pickford - who was on the cusp of announcing his new contract with the Blues - had not joined a “bigger club.”

On social media, Everton's official account posted: “9 topflight titles, 5 FA Cups, 1 European title, one of football's most-passionate fanbases, a world-class new stadium. Everton FC - a big club: past, present & future.”

Lifelong Evertonian and former world champion boxer Bellew added his own voice to the issue.

Speaking via Footballblog, the 42-year-old Scouser said: “Lee Dixon was a fantastic right-back in his time and he's entitled to his opinion.

“But to say that Everton isn't a big club is ludicrous.