England’s switch to Ireland’s Morgan Rice understands but seeks strict rules

Reuters: Ireland winger Daryl Horgan has questioned the international eligibility rules that allow players, but has said he has no strong feelings for former teammate Declan Rice, who has decided to play for England.

West Ham United’s Rice has captained Ireland three times, playing twice with Jorgen in 2018, and before the English – born midfielder’s switch global soccer body was approved by FIFA, all his international matches were friendly.

England face Ireland in a friendly at Wembley on Thursday to face Jorgen Rice.

“I will not hold back against him. We all know how good a player he is. He’s a very talented man,” the BBC quoted Morgan as saying.

“It’s one of those things – he should never have stayed in that position. There should be strict rules, so if you play friendly, that’s it.

“But this position presented itself, he was born in England, he lived in England all his life. I can understand that. He’s a young man, maybe he felt like he would never have this option, so he presented himself and he made the decision.”

Aston Villa’s Jack Greilish and defender Michael Keane have played for Ireland’s youth teams before committing to the future in England, and could attend on Thursday.

Ireland, who are looking for their first win against England since 1988, said on Tuesday that a member of their squad had tested positive for COVID-19 and was isolating themselves.

Following the Ireland clash, England have Group L 2 matches against Belgium on November 15 and Iceland on November 18.

(Srivastava Sridhar Reporting in Bangalore; Editing Lincoln Party.)