2026 World Cup: Declan Rice delivers worrying injury update as fears grow surrounding irreplaceable England star

Arsenal's Declan Rice has revealed that he has been dealing with nerve pain in his hamstring since Christmas, but the England star is "ready and fit, raring to go".

Rice is regarded as one of England's most important players, arguably second in the squad behind captain Harry Kane.

As a result, there were fears when the midfielder was forced off in the 72nd minute of England's opening match of the 2026 World Cup against Croatia, which ended in a 4-2 win for the Three Lions.

After the game, England head coach Thomas Tuchel revealed that an issue in Rice's lower back and upper hamstring led to the substitution decision being made.

"Normally, I would never take Declan out, but I didn't want to take any risk," Tuchel told ITV.

"Declan pointed to his lower back, upper hamstring and feels some discomfort. I didn't want to take any risks. It was a moment to protect him. I hope it's nothing more. Declan reassured me at the end, it's good. It's nothing big to worry about."

Rice dealing with hamstring issue since Christmas

Rice has now provided an update on his fitness, with the 27-year-old revealing that he has been managing an issue since Christmas due to the amount of matches he has played.

“I’m ready and fit, raring to go,” he told ITV. “I was feeling a little bit of neural pain in my hamstring, which I was managing from after Christmas with Arsenal for a very long time. Obviously, not a lot of people would have known that. It was all behind-the-scenes stuff but it was a smart decision.

“In the end, that last 20 minutes is probably where you pick up the most, and it’s where you play a 70‑minute match. But that last 20 is where you really feel your body going for it. And I think it was a smart decision because the last few days I felt really, really good.

“It’s an obscene amount of games. The schedule was crazy but what can we do about it? You can’t sit and complain. We have to just get on with it for the moments like I had in the Premier League, winning that Premier League.

England vs. Ghana: Rice in line to start second group-stage fixture at 2026 World Cup

"You know you’d play as many games as possible to have that feeling again and knowing that there’s a World Cup at the end of it as well. You know you’d put your body on the line to be always in to play. It’s a lot of games but we’ll get our break at the end.”

Rice has played 63 matches this season, 58 of which came for Arsenal, with the Gunners finishing their campaign just before the 2026 World Cup started, having secured a spot in the Champions League final.

The midfielder is in line to again start against Ghana on Tuesday night, as England look to book their spot in the knockout round of the 2026 World Cup with a game to spare.

However, there will naturally be concerns surrounding his fitness as the tournament progresses, as losing Rice for a key knockout-round fixture could have huge ramifications on England's chances of success this summer.