West Ham midfielder Declan Rice eligible for England duty after Fifa approve change of association

Eligible: Declan Rice could make his England debut later this month
REUTERS
George Flood5 March 2019

West Ham midfielder Declan Rice is eligible for selection for England's opening pair of Euro 2020 qualifiers this month after Fifa officially approved his change of association.

Rice was born in Kingston-upon-Thames, though qualifies for the Republic of Ireland through his grandparents and represented the country at U16, U17, U19 and U21 level in addition to earning three senior caps under Martin O'Neill.

However, after months of uncertainty, the 20-year-old finally revealed last month in a lengthy social media statement that he intended to apply to Fifa to transfer his international registration to England.

That switch has now been ratified, meaning Rice can be called up by Gareth Southgate to the latest Three Lions squad, which is due to be named on March 13.

Southgate and assistant Steve Holland have both watched the player in action over recent weeks.

"We can now confirm that the change of association has been approved," a Fifa spokesperson said on Tuesday.

England host the Czech Republic at Wembley on March 22 before travelling to face Montenegro in Podgorica three days later.

Southgate's side also head to Portugal in July for the semi-finals of the Uefa Nations League.

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