{"id":915,"date":"2026-03-31T18:27:17","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T18:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/?p=915"},"modified":"2026-03-31T18:27:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T18:27:17","slug":"thomas-tuchel-breaks-down-worrying-declan-rice-issue-as-england-boss-makes-world-cup-admission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/?p=915","title":{"rendered":"Thomas Tuchel breaks down worrying Declan Rice issue as England boss makes World Cup admission"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_cc3189\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">England face Japan at Wembley on Tuesday night with Thomas Tuchel answering questions on England&#8217;s &#8216;split camp&#8217; and the withdrawals of Arsenal stars Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka<\/h2>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"36944836\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Thomas Tuchel, Head Coach of England\" loading=\"eager\" sizes=\"(max-width: 508px) 508px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944836.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/1_Thomas-Tuchel.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944836.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s508\/1_Thomas-Tuchel.jpg 508w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944836.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615\/1_Thomas-Tuchel.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944836.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200f\/1_Thomas-Tuchel.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Thomas Tuchel, Head Coach of England\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Thomas Tuchel, Head Coach of England<cite aria-label=\"Image: 2026 The FA\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: 2026 The FA)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Thomas Tuchel admits England&#8217;s World Cup hopes are at &#8220;risk&#8221; from burnout.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Tuchel revealed Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has been playing only at \u201c70 percent capacity&#8221; because of injury and desperately needs a rest. England boss Tuchel insists the Football Association are doing everything possible to help the players recover but admits their plans could be undermined by a growing injury list.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Rice and Bukayo Saka returned to Arsenal with ongoing injury issues and Gunners boss Mikel Arteta has seen a staggering ELEVEN players in total withdraw from international duty in the March window. Tuchel admitted he knows it is not a good look but insisted he \u201ctrusted\u201d both players and said Rice has been struggling for weeks which will be a massive worry for Arsenal who are chasing trophies on three fronts.<\/p>\n<p><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_13e0b4\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\">Euro 2028 tickets to cost less than a car park spot at World Cup as UEFA commit to pricing<\/span><\/span><span data-testid=\"readmore\" class=\"ReadMore_readmore-prefix__xS44r __className_13e0b4\">READ MORE<!-- -->: <span class=\"ReadMore_readmore-link__eF9pN\">USA poses &#8216;chilling threat&#8217; to players at 2026 World Cup as human rights emergency raised<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Tuchel said: \u201cIt is a threat. Not the biggest one but it is a threat. It\u2019s just a fact, fatigue. I understand the looks of it. I still have 100 per cent trust in the honesty of Bukayo and Declan. We did medical tests. I saw them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cI have no reason to believe that Declan is not honest with me. I have no reason to believe Bukayo is not honest. But given the amount of Arsenal players, I understand the look.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cBut they both came. Declan was even out on the pitch. He did not come and say \u2018Guys, I\u2019m going home.\u2019 I heard there were camps where players did not even show up with boots and stuff.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cDeclan is a key player, Bukayo is a key player, why would I take this risk? Of course I want them in my team, of course I want them to play tomorrow. But this is just not to the moment to push. And on top of it, I have 100 percent trust in both of them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t think Arsenal would be happy if I said what the injury was. But he feels a discomfort since quite a while, and he\u2019s playing through it, and he\u2019s just now on the edge, where he thinks, \u2018Does this make sense, what I\u2019m doing here, to push through with 70 percent and push myself and push myself?\u2019 And the same with Bukayo.\u201d<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-36944837\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"36944837\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Declan Rice of England reacts during a training session at Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944837.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_Declan-Rice.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944837.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/0_Declan-Rice.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944837.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_Declan-Rice.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.mirror.co.uk\/article36944837.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_Declan-Rice.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Declan Rice of England reacts during a training session at Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Declan Rice of England reacts during a training session at Tottenham Hotspur Training Centre<cite aria-label=\"Image: 2026 The FA\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: 2026 The FA)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Tuchel confirmed Jude Bellingham &#8211; who has just come back from a hamstring injury &#8211; will also not feature against Japan but says that his decision to do split camps for the two friendlies has been fully justified.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Tuchel also believes that, despite the fears of burnout and a tough end to the season, England will get their preparations right for the summer, starting with their pre-camp in Florida before the tournament stars.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He added: \u201cWe go early to the US to spend time there and to have a pre camp that is in a more relaxed way, where we don\u2019t have the full focus too early and have a pre-camp where it\u2019s one training session per day but it\u2019s open for family, friends and is more of a relaxed atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cPlayers can go, can enjoy themselves and then we have the full focus when we arrive in Kansas. It just tells me we need this. It seems so trivial but it\u2019s so important that they enjoy their football, it\u2019s so important that they enjoy their training and their being together.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s a lot on them, a lot on them (to be) on planes and buses and hotels and meeting rooms. They just spend a lot of time there. And the end of the season for most of them does not come at the end of May \u2013 it comes hopefully in the middle of July \u2013 and it is a long one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\"><em><a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/chat.whatsapp.com\/Feq1SEG6mXDIZGTTnek7oz\" rel=\"nofollow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Join our new WhatsApp community<\/a> and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don&#8217;t like our community, you can check out any time you like. 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Tuchel revealed Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":916,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arsenal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/916"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportings.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}