Declan Rice has expressed his unwavering support for England manager Gareth Southgate after the Three Lions staged a dramatic comeback to secure a 2-1 victory over Slovakia in the Euro 2024 round of 16.
Southgate faced intense scrutiny following England’s lackluster performances during the group stages of the tournament. However, his squad demonstrated resilience and unity as they came from behind to defeat Slovakia, thanks to Jude Bellingham’s stunning injury-time overhead kick and Harry Kane’s extra-time winner.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Declan Rice emphasised the team’s solidarity and their commitment to protecting their manager. “We’ve got a togetherness, we proved that tonight,” Rice said. “We’d do anything to protect this manager, protect each other.
We’ll keep going and keep fighting, and what we’ve got as a group tonight showed out there. It’s an honour to be a part of it, and we’re going to give it everything.”
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Fellow midfielder Jude Bellingham highlighted the collective effort and sacrifices made by the team. “We’ve won this game together,” Bellingham told ITV Sport. “Not me, not Harry Kane, not the individual moments.
It’s the likes of Ivan Toney, Eberechi Eze, Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka going to left-back. It’s the sacrifice you make for the team and that’s the energy we need to keep regardless of what goes on.”
England will now face Switzerland in the quarter-finals, with the match set to be broadcast live on the BBC on Saturday at 17:00 BST. The Three Lions aim to go further than their previous performance in Euro 2020, where they reached the final but were defeated by Italy.
