Declan Rice winning fitness battle to start for England against Argentina

Declan Rice is set to overcome illness and retain his place for England’s World Cup semi-final against Argentina on Wednesday.

The Arsenal midfielder was substituted at half-time of England’s win over Norway in the quarter-final, with Thomas Tuchel revealing that he had spent most of the previous three days in bed due to illness. But it is understood that Rice has been feeling much better after England returned to their base in Kansas City for the final time before departing for Atlanta on Tuesday and the 27-year-old is expected to start alongside Elliot Anderson in midfield against the reigning world champions.

England also have fitness concerns over Ezri Konsa, who had to be substituted against Norway due to cramp, but the Aston Villa defender is expected to be in contention to start at right-back again. There is a chance that Tuchel will recall Reece James after the Chelsea captain came on as a second-half substitute against Norway, while Bukayo Saka could also start after impressing off the bench.

Jordan Pickford, meanwhile, has said that England’s players know they must keep their heads against Argentina and insisted they will not be distracted by the intense rivalry between the two countries. The semi-final in Atlanta will be the first time they have faced Argentina at the World Cup since 2002 in a fixture that is steeped in history. But the England goalkeeper believes not losing their cool could be the key to victory.

“You’ve seen throughout the tournament, you’ve seen our desire to win titles, we’ve not gotten into any scuffles or anything,” he said. “We’ve been very respectful within the game – if decisions go our way or if they don’t go our way, we just reset, we go again, and we let the football do the talking. It just shows our mentality, we don’t get wrapped up in things like that, we stay focused.”

Asked whether he is looking forward to ­facing Lionel Messi for the first time in his career, the Everton goalkeeper added: “It’s great to finally come up against him – I watched him a lot as a kid. We all know how good Messi is but we also know how good Argentina are so we can’t focus solely on him.”

Authorities in Atlanta are on high alert ahead of Wednesday’s semi-final with thousands of supporters from both countries expected at a stadium where many of the seats are unsegregated. Pickford acknowledged the significance of the game but believes it is crucial that England don’t get caught up in the occasion.

“It’s just a game of football with two sets of passionate fans who are going to be at the game. That’s what football does – it brings the fans and the nations together. We are two proud nations but the football will do the talking. Us and Argentina and Spain and France are the top four nations in the world in the rankings and we’ve all got the stage to get to the final. This is us against them and another great nation to play against. What a game it’s going to be and it’s about us beating them.”

Pickford was part of the England side that reached the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup under Gareth Southgate and lost in the final of the European Championship in 2021 and 2024. He has yet to win any major silverware at club level but claimed that he has not started thinking about whether England can go all the way this year.

“That is the dream but it’s all about Wednesday,” he said. “They are a very talented team and, regardless of the rivalry, I think it’s about us being at our best to try and get through a final in the World Cup, that’s what the challenge is.

“In 2018, it was about connecting the nation together. Now we’re in the semi-final again, we want to put smiles on our people’s faces again.”