Declan Rice has come up trumps after being given the biggest honour of his career.
Rice admits he was left “speechless” after being made captain to mark his 50th England cap as he will lead out his country in their friendly with Belgium at Wembley.
The Arsenal midfielder got the news on Sunday night as he watched his England team mates play the card game Wolf and says there was an “awkward moment” when Gareth Southgate gave him the news.
Rice said: “It's a funny setting. The staff all play a game called 'Wolf', it's a card game. We spoke about it at the World Cup. I wasn't playing, I like to watch, and Gareth came up to me while I was sat there and spoke to me about being captain.
“We kind of had an awkward stare at each other! I was speechless. I really didn't know what to say. I just stood up, shook his hand and gave him a hug and said 'thank you so much.’
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“Since I've come into the side he's put his trust and belief in me and to now win 50 caps and captain the side as well, I was speechless.”
Rice is the midfielder who joined Arsenal for £105m, has played at a World Cup and in a Euros final and yet still for him to be left completely stunned just shows what it means to him to be given the armband.
Hardly surprising really when you consider that he graduated at West Ham which produced the greatest captain of them all in the late great Bobby Moore who lifted the 1966 World Cup.
Declan Rice said he was speechless after being told he would captain England vs BelgiumBut Rice - who becomes the fifth fastest player to reach 50 caps after Marcus Rashford, Wayne Rooney, Michael Owen and Raheem Sterling - admits he is even worried about his pre-match captain’s address.
“It's crazy. To be around and next to them players is a real honour. Rooney, Owen, Raz who's racked up so many caps, Rash as well. It's happened so fast,” said Rice.
“I really don’t know where the time has gone. When I was coming through at 18, 19, the older heads used to say to me, 'Your career goes so fast.’
“I used to look at them and think, "What're you going on about? I've got ages”. But now, I'm 25, time is really going fast, 50 caps, loads of Premier League games, I'm just trying to enjoy every minute of it and be the best I can be.”
Rice admits he would one day love to captain Arsenal but was respectful to Martin Odegaard and also confessed that England has made him a better player and person - but so has his time at the Emirates.
Rice has admitted it took him time to adjust to Mikel Arteta's standards at Arsenal (Arsenal FC via Getty Images)The former West Ham captain admitted that it “blew his mind” when he first arrived at Arsenal as he struggled to cope with the extra fitness tactics and Mikel Arteta ’s demands while on his new club’s US tour last summer.
Rice says he asked questions galore of Arteta and his coaching staff and says he thought about his game non-stop. Put that against a funny anecdote that Rice told about England team mate John Stones as the pair will also meet head-on when Manchester City entertain Arsenal on Sunday.
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Rice added: “The first day I came here I saw John Stones and he didn’t even know they were playing us next! When he’s away from football he likes to be with his family and switch off and I get that, he likes to take one game at a time.
“I said ‘big game next’ and John said ‘who are you playing?’ and I said ‘we’ve got you lot!’ He said ‘oh yeah!’
“The first three weeks of pre-season at Arsenal were the toughest. We played a game against Man United in pre-season and I didn’t have a good game at all. It was in that game we really tried to work on how we wanted to play and I really struggled.
“The best thing I did was to ask questions. I didn’t want to just sit in silence and not improve. I knew with the price tag, with the season, the expectation of Arsenal coming, I’d come for the upcoming season. I’ve got myself into a good place.”
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