Alan Shearer raved about West Ham 20-year-old Declan Rice although he admitted that he didn’t agree that the player should have been allowed to make himself available for England.
The Premier League legend claimed that the Hammers player seemed to be getting better and better playing in the holding midfield role for Manuel Pellegrini’s side, and believes that Rice has a very good future in the game.
Shearer shared that while he agrees with the rule that has allowed Rice to make the switch from Ireland to England, he’d be surprised if the 20-year-old didn’t make Gareth Southgate’s next squad.
“Well it’s great for England as I think he is a very promising young player and I think he will have a very good future in the game but I don’t necessarily agree with the rule, although it has benefited England on this occasion,” said Shearer in a clip uploaded to Coral’s Twitter account.
“I know he played three friendlies for Ireland, all the youth teams over for Ireland, so I don’t necessarily agree that once you’ve played that you can go change your mind about your country, though I know they’re just friendly games.
“I understand how the Irish will be very disappointed and rightly so, but this is a decision that will benefit England because he seems to be getting better and better.
“Playing in that sitting midfielder role, Eric Dier is not playing on a regular basis for Tottenham, so I will be really really surprised if he is not in that next England squad.”
OPINION
Shearer seems to be a fan of Rice but not a supporter of his decision. While the pundit seems happy to see the defensive midfielder play for England, he doesn’t believe the player should have the option to do so after featuring for Ireland. It’s an understandable view to hold as the rule is controversial to say the least. However Rice has handled making the decision with a maturity beyond his years and hopefully once the whole reaction to his career decision calms down, everyone will focus on his tremendous talent again. The 20-year-old has played a starring role in the Hammers’ season so far and has really grew into his new midfield role. Whether there’s debate to be had about whether his long-term future still lies as centre-back is debatable, he’s clearly capable in both those areas of the team. With Rice now available for England, it would be a shock for him not to get his first cap for the nation soon as he seems like he is better and more in-form that Southgate’s other options.