Kalvin Phillips confirms Declan Rice is back in training to give England a boost ahead of France's World Cup quarter-final after illness

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Kalvin Phillips has confirmed Declan Rice is back in training for England after being absent from a previous session.

The West Ham captain has featured in all four Three Lions World Cup matches so far.

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Rice is now a regular starter for the Three Lions

However, he missed training on Wednesday due to illness, just three days before the quarter-final match against France.

Fears over his availability for the clash have now been allayed, with fellow central midfielder revealing in a England press conference that the 23-year-old is now back with his teammates.

Asked if he would be ready to play if Rice wasn’t fit, Phillips replied: “Yeah but I think Dec is fit anyway, he was back in practice today. today.

“He felt good. If everything goes wrong and Dec is out of shape, then I’ll do my best to try to complete the 90 minutes, yes.

Phillips was doubtful of being called up to the England squad in Qatar, having missed most of the season through injury.

However, he was soon named in the 26-man squad, with the Three Lions now reaching the last eight for the second tournament in a row.

Phillips would be willing to replace Rice if needed

The Manchester City midfielder has made two World Cup appearances, coming off the bench against Wales and Senegal.

Rice, on the other hand, has started every game so far and is likely to feature again on Saturday against the Blues.

England’s game against France will be their first meeting in a major tournament for ten years, when they drew 1-1 in the Euro 2012 group stage.

Victory will see them advance to the semi-finals next week, and they will face Morocco or Portugal for a place in the final.

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