Thomas Tuchel revealed Declan Rice spent much of the build-up to Englands World Cup quarter-final against Norway in bed with illness before helping the Three Lions reach the last four. The Arsenal midfielder started Saturdays 2-1 win in Miami despite battling sickness in the days leading up to the match, but was replaced at half-time by club team-mate Eberechi Eze.Rice looked uncomfortable in the Florida heat as England struggled early on and fell behind to Andreas Schjelderups opener for Norway.However, Jude Bellingham levelled shortly before the break before sealing victory in extra time to send England into a semi-final against Argentina on Wednesday.Speaking after the match, Tuchel explained the extent of Rices condition and why he opted to withdraw one of his key players at the interval.We had some players struggling in the heat, Tuchel said.Ezri Konsa was one of them with cramps and the hamstrings.Declan, we made a decision in half-time to become more offensive, to have a bit of an offensive shift.Rice withdrawal plannedThe England manager admitted the substitution had been planned while his side were trailing and that Bellinghams equaliser just before the break did not alter his thinking.I made the decision when we were 1-0 down and didnt want to go back on the decision because of the equaliser, he added.Rice had already been managing a neural issue affecting his hamstring and lower back during the tournament, and the illness further complicated his preparations for the Norway clash.Although he was fit enough to train on the eve of the quarter-final, Tuchel felt there was little chance of the midfielder completing the entire match if it went beyond 90 minutes.We had to take Elliot [Anderson] or Declan out and, knowing that Declan struggled after the last three days where he was most of the time in bed, I knew he cannot survive 90 minutes, Tuchel said.There was a possibility that it goes 120, so I didnt want to waste another change, so the decision was to take Declan out earlier than he needed to go out, just to save us another change later down the match.Rice has started five of Englands six matches at the 2026 World Cup, with the group-stage win over Panama the only game he has missed. Topics Declan Rice England National Football Team Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read This has changed me Haaland proud of shining on World Cup stage Tom Rostance 12th July, 2026 World Cup 2026 Tournament Challenge: Semi-final forecasts to help you win �250K 101 GreatGoals 12th July, 2026 FIFA World Cup 2026: Full England fixtures, results, schedule, confirmed squad, next match, kick off times Ben Miller 12th July, 2026 Tuchel labels England sloppy and lucky in spiky World Cup interview: How can you ask? Ben Miller 12th July, 2026 Norway v England: World Cup 2026 live text commentary, updates, goals and stats as it happened Jon Fisher 12th July, 2026 England 2-1 Norway: World Cup 2026 report, result, goals as Jude Bellingham goal sends Three Lions to semi finals Ben Miller 12th July, 2026
