ORLANDO — Declan Rice knows what you’ve all been saying.
Those pictures England players had taken earlier this week where they are re-enacting their goal celebrations? Rice looked decidedly rosy in his, clearly feeling the effects of the Florida sun.
“I think everyone has seen those pictures, I was bright red in those photos. Honestly, my mum was killing me,” he told reporters after he hit the ground running with a solid display in England’s final World Cup warm-up.
The 3-0 win was a step up from Saturday’s gentle stroll against New Zealand. And perhaps evidence that England are starting to understand the demands of playing in the humid conditions they’ll encounter here in the US.
“The first day that we came it was just getting used to that heat,” Rice explained.
“Coming from England where it’s hot-cold, all different types of weather, coming here and it’s always 30 degrees – it really does hit you in the face.”
Rice’s sunburn won’t pose a threat to England’s World Cup chances. But he’s one of four players Thomas Tuchel needs to protect at all costs in the next week if the Three Lions are going to make short work of a potentially taxing Group L.
Declan Rice
Rice, like the rest of the squad, is still adjusting to the heat of the American summer (Photo: Getty)How much better do things tick when Rice is here? He’s not just a good personality – universally respected and liked in the England camp – but he’s also a very, very fine midfielder who can provide style as well as a shield.
With three major tournament appearances – including Qatar 2022, when England were dreadfully unlucky to go out to France in the quarter-finals – he also has experience of what is required to succeed in the rarefied World Cup air.
Jude Bellingham
Bellingham’s swagger is a point of difference in this England team (Photo: PA)Forget the debate. It was fun for Tuchel to dispatch a few sacred cows last year when he had time on his side and could talk about culture and signing up to England DNA.
But let’s not beat around the bush: sides that win World Cups need a certain swagger and Bellingham provides that for England.
Part of the problem in the World Cup cycle has been that Tuchel’s Three Lions haven’t really been tested. They’ve played well in spells, something that you could say about Wednesday’s solid 3-0 defeat of Costa Rica, but they’ve yet to confront a really decent team under the German.
Unless they come catastrophically unstuck here in America, that will change in the next fortnight or so and when the challenges arrive they will need Bellingham.
He had the look of a player arriving in form at the right time in Orlando, showcasing his versatility and ability by occupying the number nine role for periods against Costa Rica. For his goals, his big game mentality and his ability, Bellingham needs to be involved from the start against Croatia.
Harry Kane
Kane did not score against Costa Rica – but remains England’s most potent threat (Photo: Getty)Well, who else? Wednesday was a rare example of England winning without their top goalscorer and talisman scoring. It’s no bad thing that others find a way to do what Kane makes look so effortlessly easy.
He’s in the form of his life and – unlike 2024’s anaemic version of a clearly fatigued Kane – there are no debates about whether having a more energetic striker might be a better way forward. It would now be sacrilege to talk about dropping Kane.
Elliot Anderson
An English midfielder that Manchester City – usually pretty sharp recruiters – are willing to pay in excess of £100million for? Where do I sign up?
Anderson’s rise from bit-part player at Newcastle to nailed-on England starter in two years has been quite something.
Leaving St James’ Park has helped him to grow into a player capable of influencing games at the highest level.
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