England player Declan Rice expresses outrage at sporting calendar after playing injured for months
Midfielder Declan Rice, a key player in Arsenal and the England national team, revealed that he has been competing in pain since the end of 2025. The athlete was substituted in the recent 4-2 victory against Croatia, in the group stage of the World Cup, due to muscle discomfort in his thigh.
“I had been managing pain in the back of my thigh since Christmas, when I was still at Arsenal, for a long time. Many people weren’t aware of it; it was something I dealt with behind the scenes,” Rice said during an interview with ITV Sport.
At the time he was removed from the field, the English team maintained a 3-2 lead, in a high-intensity match that was open for both sides. After a brief conversation with coach Thomas Tuchel, the player left the pitch.
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“The last 20 minutes of a game are often the ones that cause the most injuries. It’s when the body reaches its limit. It was a good decision, because in the following days I felt very good”, explained the Englishman, who took the opportunity to criticize the load of games and the sporting calendar.
“The number of matches is absurd. The schedule has been insane, but what can we do about it?”, he asked. Rice’s dissatisfaction reflects a growing debate in football about the health of athletes, especially with the expansion of tournaments such as the Champions League and the Club World Cup, which add even more commitments to an already overloaded schedule.
Rice participated in 63 matches in the 2025/2026 season, being one of Arsenal’s pillars in their victorious Premier League campaign and runner-up in the UEFA Champions League.
The expectation is that the player will return to the field in England’s next match, scheduled for Tuesday (23), at 5 pm (Brasília time), against Ghana. The match, valid for Group L of the World Cup, will be broadcast live on CazéTV, available at no additional cost on Disney+.
