England midfielder Declan Rice has reflected on his country’s World Cup exit to France.
England lost to France 2-1 in a game where they may feel they deserved more. Harry Kane missed a penalty late on, with Hugo Lloris making a host of saves to keep England out.
In the end, a deflected Olivier Giroud header decided the game, and West Ham midfielder Rice certainly isn’t blaming the England manager for this defeat.
“He has taken us so, so far; further than people can expect. Tonight he got everything spot on and it’s not on him.
The tactics were right, we played the right way, we were aggressive and we stopped Mbappe, who was quiet. It was two goals against the run of play and that’s not down to the manager, it’s up to us on the pitch.
I really hope he stays because the core group that we’ve got and what he has made for us is so special and I love playing for him and I love playing for England,” said Rice, as relayed by The Athletic.
Rice’s comments sound as sincere and genuine as they could possibly be. Rice is flourishing under Southgate at the moment and was one of the best players on the pitch against France on Saturday.
The relationship the players have with each other and the manager is something we’ve rarely seen from an England side, so Southgate deserves huge credit for sorting the team harmony.