Declan Rice Injury Update: England Manager Thomas Tuchel Assures Fans

Thomas Tuchel moved quickly to calm England nerves after Declan Rice was withdrawn during the 4-2 win over Croatia, insisting his midfield linchpin will be ready for the next World Cup group game against Ghana.

Rice, who had driven England through an impressive opening performance in their 2026 campaign, was taken off in the second half with what Tuchel described as “discomfort” in his lower back and upper hamstring. The sight of him signalling to the bench, then heading straight off, briefly cut through the optimism of a free-scoring start.

Tuchel, though, was adamant the change was precautionary.

“Declan had some unusual ball losses and I saw a bit of discomfort,” the England manager explained. “I asked him, and he pointed directly to his lower back, upper hamstring, that he feels the discomfort.

“I didn’t want to take any risk, so I decided to take Declan off, which I never wanted to do, but it was the moment to protect him, and I think Reece James did so well to replace him in the central midfield.”

The decision underlined just how central Rice has become. He had, in Tuchel’s words, a “fantastic game” before coming off, anchoring England’s play and setting the tempo in a chaotic, open contest that swung England’s way.

Any lingering anxiety in the stands eased further when Rice himself offered a relaxed assessment of the issue afterwards. The Arsenal midfielder framed it as a familiar, manageable problem rather than a fresh injury scare.

“All good, good as gold,” he said. “Just what I’ve been nursing, probably, in the second half of the season at Arsenal, little neural pains here and there.

“But yeah, I’m all good, I’m all fine, just precaution and I’ll be back out there again against Ghana.”

England’s staff will still monitor him closely in the coming days, but both manager and player struck the same note: this was about protection, not alarm. With Ghana up next and the group already tilting in England’s favour, keeping Rice on the pitch – and out of the treatment room – could define how far this team can really go.