Jamie O’Hara makes ‘massive’ Declan Rice claim as West Ham United captain England fitness remains in doubt
Jamie O’Hara believes Declan Rice is “massive” for England as speculation grows over the West Ham United captain’s fitness.
The 23-year-old missed training on Wednesday (The Times, 8 December) with an illness and there is now uncertainty over whether he will feature on Saturday against France (10 December).
The talkSPORT host engaged in a conversation with a caller and suggested the midfielder is indispensable for Southgate’s side.
Speaking on talkSPORT (06:06, 7 December), O’Hara said: “There are a few things happening with Rice potentially being ill, hopefully, he will be alright for Saturday, I am not 100 per cent sure, but he’s not well and he’s missed training.
Caller: “He’s important to our team he really is.”
O’Hara: “Yeah he’s massive.”
Huge
This will be an absolutely huge loss if Rice isn’t available to face France, with the 23-year-old being a vital cog in England’s success. He has allowed the likes of Jordan Henderson and Jude Bellingham to thrive during the tournament, and he would certainly give the Three Lions the midfield edge.
These are games that Rice will want to be involved in and he will be absolutely gutted if he cannot take the field on Saturday evening. Let’s all hope that this is just a precaution being taken by England, with Gareth Southgate not wanting another one of his players to go down ill in the lead-up to the fixture.
If Rice is fit, it will allow for the England boss to utilise the same formation and give Bellingham the licence to go forward and make things happen in an attacking sense.
Unfortunately for Hammers’ fans, these are the games the West Ham captain will want to be playing in more often and it’s been suggested by The Guardian’s Fabrizio Romano (via Twitter, 1 December) that he is expected to leave the London Stadium in 2023.