As the North London contingent arrives at camp, manager Thomas Tuchel discloses that an Arsenal midfielder will be Harry Kane’s deputy.
With Arsenal’s victorious Premier League champions returning to the group, Thomas Tuchel hopes to create a “aura” around the camp. Declan Rice will be England’s vice-captain for the World Cup.
Tuchel announced that Rice will be Harry Kane’s replacement for the tournament beginning this week, although he gave the armband to Jude Bellingham for the second half of Saturday’s warm-up victory over New Zealand.
Rice is not captain at Arsenal but is an important part of Tuchel’s leadership group which helps regulate the dressing room and he has long been tipped to be a future England captain. The 27-year-old, along with Marc Guéhi and Jordan Henderson, have captained England during Tuchel’s time in charge.
Although nations do not formally name vice-captains for the World Cup, Rice will be the next to receive the armband in the event that Kane is not playing.
“We had this talk when Harry wasn’t in camp with us, whether it’s an official thing or not,” Tuchel stated. “We started with Ollie Watkins and Declan was captain when Harry was unable to play against Wales [in October]. I told him there.
In Tampa, Bellingham captained the team for forty-five minutes while the players struggled with a subpar field at Raymond James Stadium against New Zealand. At the World Cup, they are now prepared for subpar surfaces.
Tuchel selected the Real Madrid midfielder as captain since he had the most caps by a wide margin. However, Morgan Rogers is vying for the No. 10 spot, so the manager must decide whether to start him during the tournament.
Tuchel stated, “[Bellingham] is one of the starters, but there are 14, 15 potential starters.” “And then there’s a leadership group, a special group, and guys who finish games for us, get the energy right, and have more of a role of setting the standards and accepting their roles for challenging.”
“And these roles can always change, but Jude is one of the fifteen or fourteen proper starters in my mind.”
Marcus Rashford and Anthony Gordon are fighting for a spot on the left wing, and Tuchel must choose between John Stones and Ezri Konsa to partner Guéhi. England’s campaign will begin in Dallas on June 17 against Croatia.
On a challenging surface, Rashford staked a bid for a starting spot in the victory over New Zealand. Over the weekend, Arsenal players rejoined the team, which was assembled based on both their form and their chemistry off the field.
After his victory in Tampa, Kane, who is currently among the top 10 international goal scorers, stated, “We talk about on the pitch, talent and quality but ultimately you have to get the aura.”
“You need to be strong off the field and ensure that you can practice effectively and spend up to eight weeks together. We need to rely on our ability to work together, which we have demonstrated in past competitions, and I think we have an excellent team to do so.
“The Arsenal boys are coming in to give the team a boost and a little more energy.” We’ll be playing Croatia before you know it.
After playing in Tampa, where the surface was laid the week before and the grass rolls were haphazard, Kane stated that England players are anticipating bad pitches during the tournament. Tuchel and his colleagues don’t think possession-dominant clubs will benefit from these circumstances.
“The heat was the main reason we wanted to be here, and I thought we handled it pretty well,” Kane stated. “I had to deal with the poor quality of the pitch. That will occur during the competition.
“On that pitch, it wasn’t always possible for us to play quickly and sharply. It was somewhat dry and sticky. We have to deal with [these] events. The game was an additional stage in our preparation throughout the first week.
After a season in which Arsenal won the title by honing attacks from corners, free kicks, and throw-ins, backroom staff have informed England players that set-pieces might decide the World Cup.
England defender Dan Burn stated, “We have talked a little about it probably being a World Cup of set-pieces.” “We will discuss it in more detail when we get to Kansas, but I believe it was figuring out what New Zealand were doing and how we could get players free.”
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