Graeme Souness slams Declan Rice and claims he did something ‘impossible’ in Euro 2024 final

Declan Rice’s form was heavily criticised over the course of England’s Euro 2024 campaign (Picture: Getty)

Graeme Souness has launched a scathing attack on Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice and claimed he achieved something ‘impossible’ during England’s Euro 2024 final defeat against Spain.

Rice has been a mainstay of the Three Lions midfield under the reign of Gareth Southgate which came to an end on Tuesday after the 53-year-old stepped down.

After a stellar first season in north London following his £105 million move from West Ham, Rice was expected to be a key figure in England’s attempts to win a first major trophy since 1996.

And although the 25-year-old was an ever-present, Rice struggled to reproduce the performances which made him such a force at the heart of Arsenal’s engine room last term.

Souness has previously suggested Rice is far from the complete midfield player and needs to add goals to his game before he can be considered the finished article.

The former Liverpool skipper, however, was left frustrated and bemused by Rice’s display against Spain last Sunday when he completed, according to Souness, just one forward pass.

‘England were at their best when they went a goal behind,’ Souness , Three Up Front. ‘All of a sudden they started taking risks. They had to be braver and risk making a mistake, risk passing it forward or trying to play someone in. Instead they were just going sideways or backwards and it was driving me mad in the final, as it had done the whole tournament.

‘I did some research and found that Declan Rice only completed one forward pass against Spain. One completed forward pass in 90 minutes for a midfield player… that’s impossible!’

Rice is far from the only high-profile England player to have been singled out for criticism, with skipper Harry Kane also encountering a backlash.

Kane was hauled off with half an hour remaining against Spain with Southgate explaining his skipper had struggled physically during the tournament.

Souness, however, believes the Bayern Munich striker, England’s all-time record scorer, was let down by his midfield.

He said: ‘If I were him I’d be pointing to the fact that he doesn’t get enough service. No one passes to him, he comes short for the ball and doesn’t receive it.

‘The England midfield is non-existent and they were non-existent in the final against Spain. He’s struggled because of that just as much as he’s struggled because of any lack of form or fitness.

‘He was getting no service whatsoever. He was getting bullied off the ball because it wasn’t being given to him quick enough. I have sympathy for him.’

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