Declan Rice is the latest player in Gareth Southgate’s squad to respond strongly to remarks made by many former England players.
Following the Three Lions’ lackluster 1-0 victory against Serbia and their 1-1 draw with Denmark, a number of pundits have criticised the team and manager Southgate in particular.
Former players have taken aim at players like Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden, and Rice.
In a media appearance prior to England’s pivotal game against Slovenia, Rice responded to the critics.
Several well-known figures have made public calls for change, including Jamie Carragher, Micah Richards, and Gary Lineker.
On his podcast, The Rest Is Football, Lineker proceeded to call the Three Lions ‘s***’.
The Arsenal midfielder has now made an effort to downplay the criticism, urging former England players to come together to strengthen the team instead of fostering a hostile environment around it.
In an interview with ITV on Sunday, Rice was questioned about if he was upset to get such negative feedback from former England players.
Rice replied:
‘I’m not disappointed because I’ve played football long enough now, I know how they work. That’s why I really do not get bothered about it at all.
‘Look, they’re entitled to their opinion. They’re on the TV, they’re saying whatever they want.
‘I know some of them personally, they’re great guys. But, like I said, they’ve been in our shoes as well. Sometimes [they should] just have that thought of process just before they speak that they have been where I’m sat, where our other players have sat, and not done well at tournaments.
‘So look, I don’t know why we feel like it (England’s start to the Euros) is such a negative thing. We’re talking like we’re going out of the tournament here.
‘We are top of the group. We need to stay positive, stay upbeat. Let’s have some positivity going into games. Let’s give players the best confidence in the world.’
England and Rice will have the chance to answer to their critics on the pitch when they face Slovenia on Tuesday in their final group stage match.
England boss has to find the best solution for his players
Southgate has some big decisions to make regarding the role of Trent Alexander-Arnold in the team.
It remains to be seen if Cole Palmer and Kobbie Mainoo will get more opportunities to play moving forward.
England’s approach has been conservative so far at the Euros and Southgate has been called to play attacking football with the players available at his disposal.