The mere notion of Declan Rice becoming an England captain would have sounded bizarre back in 2018 as the midfielder cut his teeth in international football with the Republic of Ireland.
Sure, Rice was born in London but his entire youth career on the international stage came with Ireland.
Under-18, Under-19, Under-21, senior squad – Rice made his way up through the ranks to earn three caps on the senior stage.
Rice only committed to playing in friendlies though, meaning there was always a nagging fear that he would switch to play for England.
Sure enough, Rice switched in 2019 and his career has been on a quite incredible trajectory ever since.
The 25-year-old has featured at two major tournaments for England and has become a £100million midfielder following his move from West Ham United to Arsenal.
Now one of the first names on the team sheet for Arsenal and England, Rice is going from strength to strength and hit a big milestone on Tuesday night.
Harry Kane sends message to Declan Rice
Rice not only racked up his 50th cap for England but also captained the Three Lions in a 2-2 draw with Belgium.
That was a double delight for Rice, marking his 50th cap with a moment he will remember forever.
Rice was given the armband with usual skipper Harry Kane ruled out through injury and the Bayern Munich man has now send a message of support to the midfielder.
Kane has taken to social media to congratulate Rice on his 50th cap for England alongside leading the team out at Wembley Stadium for the first time.
Kane also congratulated Ivan Toney on his first England goal having bagged a first-half penalty to equalise for the Three Lions.
Kane is five years older than Rice and his reign as England captain, of course, won’t last forever.
When it comes to picking out a potential heir, few stand out as clearly as Rice.
Rice is truly becoming a complete midfielder and he really seems to be thriving in a leadership role for Arsenal.
Now bringing that to the international stage, Rice looks primed to become England captain down the line.
We would expect to see Rice rack up more and more caps for England in the coming years and wouldn’t be at all surprised to see many of them coming with the armband on.
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