Declan Rice bounced into England’s media HQ at the weekend wearing the smile of a man in good health and good spirits. The truth is, on the pitch, it has never quite looked as free and easy for his country.
Take the opening game against Croatia last Wednesday. Rice was a one-man, NFL-style special team – the kicker. His set-piece deliveries were fast and accurate and led to two of England’s goals in a 4-2 win.
But if they are to survive knockout matches against the very best, England will need the midfielder to land some blows in his position of strength – namely, midfield.
When Croatia scored twice in the first half during spells in which England had no control, Rice was a bystander. Head bowed, he looked beaten after the second, a player unable to restore order amid chaos. The frustration, for England and surely for Rice himself, is that he is good enough to be that player.
Assistant Anthony Barry gave a remarkably candid interview at half-time in which, of the team’s performance, he said: ‘It was confused and complicated. We went short when we should have gone long, and long when we should have gone short.’
It felt to many long-time observers of England there in Dallas as if the comments could be applied to Rice as much as anyone. On the ball, he played backwards too often. He became trapped in a pocket low on England’s left. During his 73 minutes, there were only two forward passes into the final third. Thomas Tuchel later reflected on Rice’s ‘unusually loose balls’.
Declan Rice’s set-pieces caused Croatia problems, but he was a bystander for their two goals
He produced an uncharacteristic midfield display for England despite their 4-2 win vs Croatia
But it was off the ball where Rice was more out of sorts. He did not make a single tackle, and there were plenty to be made. He did not register an interception, clearance or block, either. He won only one of his three duels. If the defence of Rice is that he is a master of the invisible work – and one former international made that very point to us this week – then this was the sort of invisibility England can ill afford.
If opponents are going to see more of the ball, and that will happen in the latter stages, then they need to see more of Rice. Unseen work must leave a trace. Against Croatia, the game existed around him, not through him.
The possibility of Spain in the last 16 inevitably evokes memory of the Euro 2024 final in Berlin, albeit a painful one for England and Rice. He struggled on the ball that night when under pressure and misplaced nine passes. There was just one tackle. England lost the midfield and, with it, the match.
But there is mitigation. The Rice we see come the summer has spent autumn, winter and spring running himself into the ground. It is little wonder that the tank can look empty when the mileage is so high. The dynamism that drove Arsenal to a Premier League title is left scattered over the battlefields of north London, Manchester and Merseyside. He has, he revealed during his visit to the Kansas City media centre, been managing neural pain in his hamstring since Christmas, and has played ‘an obscene amount of games’. That number was 63 for club and country this season.
But fatigue – mental or muscular – is not the only reason Rice looked uncomfortable in the opener. Tuchel uses him as a No 8 in a midfield two, with Elliot Anderson the manager’s pick as the deeper-lying No 6. At Arsenal, Rice plays as part of a three, invariably on the left. To revisit Barry’s ‘confused’ observation, Rice’s touch map against Croatia showed his involvement to be almost exclusively left-sided. Whether habit or instruction, there was little presence in the central attacking spaces where a midfielder of his quality should exert influence.
At Tuchel’s request, England play through Anderson. He has become the senior midfield partner, the primary reference point. At times, it feels as if Rice is struggling for identity within the system. It is no surprise that he comes alive when a deadball awaits and the kicker is kingpin.
He will stay in the side, of course, and so he should. His pedigree, character and deliveries are too good to contemplate anything other. He has started England’s last 20 tournament matches. Yet, that doubt remains of a vulnerability in England’s midfield when they meet, as they will, a team of technical excellence at this World Cup.
It was put to Rice that England will be getting a better version of himself this summer, given his influence for Arsenal this season. The theory was sound. Rice’s pause, and his answer, suggest that he knows, in practice, it is not so simple.
Elliot Anderson (left) is the deeper-lying No 6 in the Three Lions’ midfield under Thomas Tuchel
‘I’d like to think so,’ he told ITV. ‘But it’s still on me on the day to go out there and perform. And that’s the thing with football, you go into a game and you always hope that the best version of you can turn up. But you’re a bit like a tennis player or a golfer, sometimes. Sometimes you have your game, sometimes you don’t have your game. You’re constantly trying to find your best levels. I’ve managed to do that for a lot of periods through this season and obviously I want to bring that into the World Cup.’
Sticking with theory, he and Anderson should be one of the best midfield pairings at this tournament. Rice was a British record £105million player when he joined Arsenal in 2023, and Anderson is about to inherit that tag at Manchester City.
But combining their value with England remains a work in progress.
‘I think he (Anderson) is exactly what we need,’ said Rice. ‘He suits how Tuchel wants to play perfectly. I love playing with him. We’re similar profiles in a way, but we really bounce off each other. We speak about our connections, how we want to play with each other. Even in training, we’re building small little things.’
But control against better opposition?
‘In big games you want to control the ball, for sure, but there’s always spells in matches (when you don’t),’ said Rice. ‘You’ve got to be smart in all phases of play.’
And Rice is smart – smart enough to know that he’s so much more than a designated kicker. The challenge is to bring that quality inside the field. Corners can win matches, but control is needed to win a tournament.
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