England manager Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice will serve as the vice-captain for the Three Lions at this summer’s World Cup.
The 27-year-old, who now has 72 senior caps, is set to be one of the most experienced figures in Tuchel’s preferred starting eleven. Rice recently played a key role in Arsenal’s first Premier League title triumph since the 2003-04 season, and also helped the Gunners reach the Champions League final, where they narrowly lost to Paris Saint-Germain on penalties last weekend.
Rice previously wore the captain’s armband during Harry Kane’s absence in a friendly against Wales back in October, when Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins led the attack in Kane’s place.
Speaking after Saturday’s warm-up victory over New Zealand, Tuchel told reporters (via BBC Sport): “I think I would say Declan is my vice-captain.”
When asked if Rice had been officially informed of the role, the German coach added: “That’s a fair question. I was just thinking about it. Whether we need to make it official or not. But I believe we had that conversation when Harry wasn’t with us. We started Ollie up front, and I think Declan was captain that day. That’s when I told him.”
Rice has now linked up with England’s training camp in the United States, alongside Arsenal teammates Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, and Eberechi Eze. The squad began their preparations in Florida on Sunday.
Tuchel’s side have one more friendly scheduled against Costa Rica in Orlando on Wednesday, followed by a closed-door match against Miami FC. The team will then relocate to their base in Kansas City on Saturday.
England open their World Cup campaign on 17 June against Croatia, before facing Ghana and Panama in Group L.
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