England midfielder Declan Rice says he had an "average" World Cup by his own standards, the Guardian reported. The 27-year-old played 69 games last season. They included a title win with Arsenal and a Champions League final defeat before the tournament. "It's annoying because at the World Cup you want to be at your best, you want to be totally fresh," Rice said.
Rice named the third-place playoff against France, in which he scored, as probably his best game. He also played well against DR Congo in the last 32, finishing the game as an emergency right-back. He said he looks back on the semi-final defeat to Argentina and the group game against Ghana and wonders if he could have done better. According to the Guardian, he managed nerve pain in a hamstring through the second half of last season. The pain also affected his lower back.
Rice said he "did not feel right at all" after playing the full 90 minutes of Arsenal's defeat at Brighton on September 19. Coach Thomas Tuchel then stood him down from England's first four Nations League matches. They included the 3-2 home loss to Spain at Wembley. Rice said Tuchel was "really understanding" and told him to take time to get ready. After strong displays against Bayern Munich and Liverpool, he said he now feels close to 100%.
England meet Spain at the Metropolitano Stadium on Sunday. They will top their Nations League group only if they beat the world champions in Madrid. In theory, that would give them an easier draw for the two-leg quarter-finals in March. Rice won his 81st cap in Thursday's 2-1 win over Croatia at Wembley.
Tuchel has picked James Trafford in goal ahead of Jordan Pickford. "Traff will play. We want to see how far Traff is," Tuchel said. He still described Pickford as England's number one "at the moment". He also said defender Ezri Konsa is back and ready to play after a minor knee problem.
Away from England duty, Rice told BBC Sport that a new Arsenal contract is "hopefully on the horizon soon". His current deal runs until 2028. BBC Sport reported that the new deal will put him level with Bukayo Saka as Arsenal's top earner. Rice also defended Arsenal teammate Ben White, whom some fans booed at Wembley against Croatia. Rice said the incident behind the boos happened over five years ago and that White has moved on.