Thomas Tuchel told to consider making Harry Kane’s teammate new England captain

Thomas Tuchel should consider Declan Rice as a potential new England captain despite Harry Kane being in the team.

That’s according to Three Lions legend Stuart Pearce, who also believes Rice should have the armband for Arsenal.

Getty

The Gunners midfielder was named vice-captain for his nation ahead of the 2026 World Cup by manager Tuchel on Sunday.

He will play deputy to Kane during the tournament in North America, which officially gets started on Thursday evening.

And Pearce thinks the decision to make Rice vice-captain is a clever one, tipping him for a higher rank for both club and country.

“I’ve always viewed Rice from afar…maybe I’m slightly biased towards him as I’ve worked with him…that he’d thrive in an environment like that,” the ex-England defender told talkSPORT.

“I would love to see him as the Arsenal captain, I can’t believe that he’s not Arsenal captain.

“I think he would flourish in the role and he is captain material, so him being England vice-captain is fantastic to see.”

Host Adrian Durham agreed and added: “I think this is one of Tuchel’s shrewdest moves, I think he should be Arsenal captain too.

“As West Ham captain, he took games and won them virtually single-handedly…I now feel that at Arsenal, he’s playing some game within himself and it’s not a negative from his point of view, as he’s doing it out of respect for the vice-captain or captain.

“But I feel there’s so much more to come from him and Tuchel making him vice-captain, you can’t take it away from Kane, but making him vice might get some more out of him at the World Cup.”

Pearce then said: “That’s the hope I think, his esteem will rise on the back of that. Kane is the captain, but there’s a little bit of me that would love to see Declan as the captain, with Harry in the team.”

Getty

Getty

England’s strong leadership group

Kane will take England into another major tournament as skipper, with Rice as his right-hand man at the World Cup.

But the Three Lions’ squad is filled with some impressive leaders and that’s something that could majorly benefit them.

Jude Bellingham is one of those leaders, however, Pearce has discussed whether the Real Madrid superstar could be left upset by not being named vice-captain instead of Rice.

“He’s got to get in the team first [to be upset],” Pearce began.

“The fact that he’s picked Rice and the timing of it, I’m not sure whether there’s something there that Bellingham captained the team the other day [against New Zealand], but whatever.

“Listen, he’s done brilliantly, 40 caps at the age he’s at, he’s going to be one of the all-time cap-holders and hopefully he’ll have a winner’s medal to show for it as well.”

Getty

As well as Bellingham, many other club captains and leaders are in the England squad set to go for glory at the World Cup.

Jordan Henderson, Reece James, Jordan Pickford, Marc Guehi and Dean Henderson have all successfully led a club side before.

Meanwhile, John Stones, Dan Burn and Ezri Konsa are also among those who are sure to have an impact in the dressing room.

talkSPORT commentator, Jim Proudfoot, said: “There are a lot of leaders and a lot of guys who are quiet leaders too, Konsa for instance, I would say is a consummate pro.

“He’s somebody that everyone in the squad will look up to. He’s not the most vocal, but he leads by example.

“I think England are blessed with a lot of leaders, Reece James, Elliot Anderson…England are in a strong position.”

Stay up to date with all the latest World Cup tips & predictions, World Cup Top Goalscorer Odds, World Cup Group Winner Odds and all the best World Cup Betting Offers and Free Bets in our dedicated betting hub