Declan Rice said why Declan Rice isn't playing was a hamstring issue he had been managing since after Christmas, but he expects to be fit for England's second World Cup group game against Ghana in Boston on Tuesday. He was forced off in the 72nd minute against Croatia last Wednesday, even after saying the move was smart.
Rice told ITV Sport: “I’m ready and fit, raring to go,” and added that he had felt “a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time.” He also said, “It was a smart decision.”
Rice and England workload
The numbers explain why England are handling his load carefully. Rice has played 63 matches this season, with 55 for Arsenal and eight for England. He called that volume “an obscene amount of games,” and said, “The schedule was crazy but what can we do about it?”
That workload stretches across club and country, with Arsenal winning the Premier League and reaching the finals of the Champions League and Carabao Cup. He said the pain sat in the upper hamstring and radiated into his lower back, so the issue was not just a brief knock from the Croatia game.
England in Boston
England began a hot-weather acclimatisation camp in Florida at the start of June, and Rice said the conditions will shape the way the team plays in North America. “The heat’s going to dictate [our playing style] in spells but the manager’s been really clear with us and with this squad that we have the strength and power to outrun and outplay teams with our strength,” he said.
Bukayo Saka has a separate achilles problem and is not expected to start against Ghana after following an individual training programme on Saturday. Rice’s own update keeps him in line for Tuesday, and it also gives England a clearer picture of how much they can ask from a midfielder who has already carried a heavy season load.
Bukayo Saka and Ghana
Noni Madueke is likely to continue on the right wing, while Marcus Rashford remains another option for England as they shape the side for Ghana. Rice said, “Bukayo will impact this tournament,” and that comment fits the wider picture now: England can afford to protect one key midfielder only because the next game is close enough for him to recover, but not so close that the schedule stops being a factor.
