Declan Rice named to England squad ahead of Euro qualifiers

Declan Rice will have a chance to win his first cap for England after manager Gareth Southgate included the 20-year-old West Ham midfielder in his 25-man squad for this month's Euro 2020 qualifiers.

"His form warrants it," Southgate said. "We like what we've seen in terms of his personality, his character, and his leadership qualities. He'll fit very well into how we work."

Earlier this month, FIFA approved Rice's eligibility to represent the Three Lions after he appeared in three friendly matches for the Republic of Ireland last year. Rice, who was born in London, was eligible to play for Ireland via his paternal grandparents.

England will kick off its qualifying campaign at home against the Czech Republic on March 22 before visiting Montenegro three days later.

While Rice has been rewarded for his play at West Ham, the likes of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, James Ward-Prowse, and Conor Coady will be disappointed to miss out on representing England after performing admirably for their respective clubs.

"We love Prowsey - this recent spell is his best since we capped him and he's a world-class set-piece taker, but he's only recently got back in the team at Southampton," Southgate said when asked about Ward-Prowse's absence

The manager added that Jesse Lingard and Harry Winks were left out of the squad because they are still recovering from injuries.

Additionally, teenager Jadon Sancho received his second consecutive call-up following continued positive performances at Borussia Dortmund, while Callum Wilson was also selected again after scoring in each of Bournemouth's last three Premier League matches.