david_smith
Declan Rice has not been included in the provisional England squad to face Spain and Switzerland.
Gareth Southgate chose not to include the West Ham teenager for the upcoming matches, and says Rice has “a really difficult decision” to make.
The England manager acknowledged that there is a lot of pressure on Rice, and says the decision lies with the player.
“There are so many dual-nationality players and he is a good, young player,” the England manager said.
“He’s got a really difficult decision because there’s a lot of pressure on him.
“I’m conscious he’s a very young man and there’s a lot of spotlight on him. As far as I’m concerned he’s with Ireland at the moment.
“As much as we think he’s a very good player, that decision has to lie with him.â€
Jack Butland, Gary Cahill, Jamie Vardy, and Ashley Young are also absent from the squad, while Manchester United left back Luke Shaw has earned a recall.
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland, Alex McCarthy, Jordan Pickford
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Harry Maguire, Danny Rose, Luke Shaw, John Stones, James Tarkowski, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker
Midfielders: Fabian Delph, Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, Jesse Lingard, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Raheem Sterling
Strikers: Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Danny Welbeck
