England's Declan Rice: We should be feared - we have silenced critics

Declan Rice believes England’s World Cup performances have not been given the credit they deserve but the side have “silenced the critics”.

England's Declan Rice following the FIFA World Cup Group B match at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar. Picture date: Tuesday November 29, 2022. PA Photo. See PA story WORLDCUP Wales. Photo credit should read: Nick Potts/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: Use subject to restrictions. Editorial use only, no commercial use without prior consent from rights holder.

A comfortable 3-0 victory over Senegal in the last-16 has set Gareth Southgate’s side up for a clash against the reigning champions at Al Bayt Stadium on Saturday night.

Having boasted the best record in the group stages – including a 6-2 victory over Iran and a 3-0 win against Wales – England have caught the eye in Qatar.

But Rice feels other nations have earned more plaudits than the Euro 2020 runners-up and insists England have earned the right to be feared.

“I don’t think we get the credit we deserve in our performances,” said the West Ham skipper.

“I think if you look at other teams, like Holland and Argentina, they win their games comfortably and they get called masterclasses.

“With us, it always gets picked off. The negative things always come that way. If you look at the last couple of games, it’s been faultless. I think countries, like I said the other day, should be starting to fear us now because we’re a great team.

“We’re silencing the critics. Going into the tournament, there was a lot of talk that we don’t score enough goals. That’s another one we’ve kept people quiet on. There was a lot of scrutiny around the defence and conceding goals, but it’s been solid. We’re going to keep building and pushing.”