Rice amazed by England talent

DECLAN RICE has promised that England’s youngsters are on a mission to entertain and are ready to carve out a reputation for themselves as winners. There is a feeling that a thrilling team is ready to break out of Gareth Southgate’s squad and Rice has given insight into the collective ability that the coach has at his disposal by describing it as ‘gobsmacking’. It was a bold claim but the West Ham midfielder feels the depiction is accurate. The last time such a buzz was building around an England squad was during Sven Goran Eriksson’s reign, when his squad were tagged ‘the Golden Generation’ but Rice (right) does not believe Southgate’s group will get caught up in any hype. The 22-yearold insists these players have room for improvement — the average age of the group picked for these three fixtures against San Marino, albania and Poland was just 24 years and three months — but he says untapped potential will not hinder their ambitions at Euro 2020 this summer. ‘When I’m training, you take a step back and look at the attacking players we have got,’ said Rice. ‘Even though I am a West Ham player, I’m always watching games and people like Phil Foden — he’s amazing to watch. You are gobsmacked by the talent they have got. But now, it’s about going out on to the international stage and putting it into a trophy. There has always been that talk of the ‘‘Golden Generation’’ falling but we don’t look too much into that. ‘We know we have quality in the squad and we have got enough to beat any team in the world. ‘It is just about on the day. Can we perform? There is a lot of pressure in tournaments. Can we stick to the plan and put on a performance?’ It is why there is such importance on tonight’s Wembley date against Poland. Southgate wants to see the work England have put in at Pennyhill Park over the last week take shape and put them on the road to the World Cup. Sunday’s 2-0 win in albania was a war of attrition but there is a now a chance for England to express themselves and Rice feels the team has a duty to thrill the TV viewers. ‘The fans want to be entertained,’ said Rice. ‘They don’t want to watch a boring game, they want to see the flair players, the attacking players who light it up but equally winning is important. ‘I always say if I’m not having the best of games, I still try to give everything I can to ensure we get the win — so I think it is about getting that balance. no disrespect to San Marino and albania but it will be a real step up and closer to opposition who we will be facing in the Euros. ‘It is a real chance to go out and make a statement and put on a good performance.’