England midfielder Declan Rice has made a bold statement following England’s 1-0 loss to Italy on Friday.
The Three Lions produced another abject display at the San Siro which eventually knocked them out of their UEFA Nations League group.
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England were beaten by Italy 1-0 in Milan on Friday
Giacomo Raspadori’s superb 68th-minute goal opened the door in Milan for Roberto Mancini’s men.
There was simply nothing to get excited about from an England perspective, with the last scoreless game leaving England 450 minutes without a goal in open play – their worst run in 22 years.
The Three Lions are one of only two nations to have failed to score a single goal without a penalty in the Nations League. The other is San Marino, made up of part-time workers.
After the clash, West Ham midfielder Rice spoke to the media and said he was not worried ahead of the World Cup, despite his side’s poor form.
“It’s not that we don’t create the chances,” Rice said. “So many times we walked into the penalty area. Even I could have been vaccinated, instead of dropping it.
“I see it in training, there are goals for fun. Believe me, we’re going to be good.
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Rice still believes his team will prove everyone wrong at the World Cup
With just 58 days left until the start of the tournament in the Gulf state, England are miles off the pace, without a win in five matches.
Nonetheless, England manager Gareth Southgate echoed his midfielder’s thoughts.
The Three Lions boss told talkSPORT: “We are scratching our heads considering the attacking players we had on the pitch.
“We found the spaces and dragged their defense out of shape. But the last good bits weren’t there.
“It’s hard to understand. I can’t stay in the dressing room and criticize the players because I think we were on the right track.
“It’s a night where you have to be very careful, in the locker room, not to lose confidence in what you’re doing and get distracted by, inevitably, which will cause a lot of noise because of the results we’ve had. had.”
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