England midfielder carries an empty suitcase to hold the Gold Cup
In addition to two bags containing personal items, Rice also brought another suitcase when he joined the England team at St George's Park earlier this week. The West Ham midfielder grinned as he patted the second suitcase and told the driver: "There's nothing in this suitcase. It's empty. Hopefully I'll bring home the Golden Cup in this suitcase." .
According to British newspaper Sunsport, Rice is sure to start and will have the 34th appearance for England in the opening match of the 2022 World Cup against Iran on November 21. "It's unbelievable, it's crazy. It feels so different. World Cup, I'm coming," the 23-year-old midfielder shouted on England's YouTube channel.
Similarly, captain Harry Kane believes England can aim for the ladder of glory at the 2022 World Cup, after finishing fourth in the 2018 World Cup, third in the Nations League 2019 and second in Euro 2021. The 29-year-old striker also sang. Praise coach Gareth Southgate for changing mentality and building a team that is always ambitious to be able to compete for titles. "To win the championship is very difficult and we will have to work extremely hard, need a little more luck and everything will go our way. But the most important thing is not afraid to say that we go to Qatar. to win," emphasized Kane.
He ran poorly for the 2022 World Cup when he did not win the last six matches. In the summer, they lost both matches against Hungary, drew Italy and Germany in the UEFA Nations League. In September, they lost 0-1 to Italy and then drew 3-3 with Germany, finishing bottom of the group and having to be relegated to B division in the 2023-2024 season.
However, Kane believes that this series of unsuccessful matches has helped ease the pressure on the players. "In a way, going through that streak before the big tournament keeps you from getting carried away with expectations," he said. "If we win all the games before the tournament then that means England is under another pressure, to keep winning going into the tournament."
England have arrived in Qatar and are stationed at the 5-star Souq Al Wakra hotel. Yesterday, "Three Lions" practiced for the first time on Al Wakrah Stadium with a temperature of up to 30 degrees Celsius. Kyle Walker participated in the full training session, although he had not fully recovered from his groin injury. In the following interview, the 32-year-old defender of Man City admitted that he could not return in time for the Iran match, and could play in the next match against the US on November 25.
Similarly, James Maddison also left open the possibility of playing in the opening match of the 2022 World Cup despite completing England's first training session. But at the training session on November 17, the Leicester midfielder was absent. Before that, Maddison left the field in the 25th minute of the 2-0 win over West Ham in the 16th round of the Premier League last weekend.
