Declan Rice to pledge international future to England in snub to Republic of Ireland
Rice has represented his parents' country of birth at all age groups including three caps for the senior side, but none were in competitive games allowing the Three Lions to swoop
DECLAN RICE will announce he has turned his back on the Republic of Ireland to make himself for available for England, according to reports.
The 19-year-old West Ham kid has represented Ireland at every age group and has three senior caps after making his debut against Turkey in March this year.
But Rice has not played in any competitive games and under FIFA rules that has left the door open for England to swoop.
claim Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate, who has been closely monitoring Rice this season, invited the teenager to St George’s Park earlier this month.
London-born Rice was told if he opted to represent England he would be fast-tracked into Southgate’s set-up and could even be part of the squad for next month’s games against the USA and Croatia at Wembley.
Rice’s potential switch of allegiance will be a huge blow to Republic manager Martin O’Neill who had hoped the talented youngster, who can operate in defence and midfield, would stick with the country of his parents.
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O’Neill fancied his chances of convincing Rice who switched agents earlier this year that his future was with the Republic and he would be an integral part of their future plans.
But with their recent struggles and just two appearances at major tournaments since the 2002 World Cup, Rice sees a brighter future with England.
Rice has seen the upturn in the Three Lions fortunes under Southgate and the progressive football on display as they reached the World Cup semi-finals and beat Spain 3-2 in Seville last month.
He follows a similar path to Aston Villa's Jack Grealish, the Birmingham-born schemer pledged his allegiance to the country of his birth in 2016 after previously playing for the Republic’s Under-21s.