Robbie Savage names West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice in combined England and France starting XI
Robbie Savage had named West Ham United captain Declan Rice in his England and France combined starting XI before their crunch World Cup clash, in his column for The Mirror.
The Three Lions face the defending World Cup champions in the quarter-finals on Saturday 10 December, with the winner facing one of Portugal or Morocco in the last four.
Hammers midfielder Rice has been a mainstay in Gareth Southgate’s midfield so far in Qatar, and although missing training earlier this week due to illness, is still expected to be fit for selection.
Writing for his weekly column for The Mirror, pundit Savage dissected the blockbuster affair before naming his combined XI, which had no room for Bukayo Saka, but did include the West Ham midfielder.
He said: “I’ve compiled a hybrid Anglo-French combined XI, and there are more England players in it than French – which I think reflects the relative strength of the two squads in Qatar:
“Lloris; Walker, Kounde, Varane, Shaw; Rice, Bellingham, Griezmann; Mbappe, Kane, Foden.”
Deserved
Although England came under scrutiny following their goalless draw against the USA, the whole team, and in particular Rice, have rallied incredibly well.
Throughout their final group stage match against Wales and their last 16 encounter versus Senegal, Rice was the lynchpin that every England attack was held together by.
When Jude Bellingham surged forward in an attacking burst, it was Rice who covered that vacant space.
When Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw were exposed down the left flank, it was again the Hammers captain who covered the space and did the hard yards.
The French side possesses an abundance of attacking talent, including the likes of Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappe, so Rice will have to play an extremely disciplined role and will have to marshal this duo all night long if England are to stand a chance.
Savage is quite right to place the England international in his combined starting XI, and if he can perform to his ceiling, then England’s hopes of consecutive World Cup semi-finals will be made that bit easier.