England squad: Declan Rice handed first call-up after switching allegiances ahead of Euro 2020 qualifiers

Rice, who was born in London and has Irish grandparents, last week saw his switch from the Republic of Ireland ratified by Fifa

Declan Rice has been included in his first ever England squad for this month’s Euro 2020 qualifiers against Czech Republic and Montenegro.

The West Ham United youngster, who has played three senior internationals for the Republic of Ireland, transferred his registration to England earlier this year after pulling out of Irish duty last year. Rice, who grew up in London to an Irish family, only received his official confirmation from Fifa of his change in registration earlier this month.

Rice has shone for West Ham this season under Manuel Pellegrini, moving up into a holding midfield position from centre-back. He has attracted the attention of Manchester City but he has recently signed a new long-term contract at the London Stadium. Southgate said at his press conference at St George’s Park this afternoon how impressed he has been by Rice’s form this season.

“His form warrants it,” Southgate said of Rice. “It’s obviously been a well-publicised situation with Declan. We’ve tracked him for quite a while. I think they are really big decisions when you are asking a player to transfers associations. You have to be very clear that you feel they have a future with you.”

Southgate made clear that he never promised to Rice he would definitely play for England when they spoke. “There were never any guarantees made to him,” Southgate said. “Because I think that was also important. You’ve got to be playing well to get in the squad. But his form has been excellent, we like what we’ve seen in terms of his personality, his character, leadership qualities, he can play as a holding midfield player and we’ve seen him play very well as a centre-back. So I think he’ll fit very well into the way that we work and we’re look forward to welcoming him with us next week.”

Ultimately Southgate pointed at Rice’s mentality as a reason for him to succeed. “There aren’t many players of his age playing as well as he is in the Premier League,” Southgate said. “We’ve actually got a few good young players playing well in the Premier League. So, in the end, you can talk about talent a lot. But in the end, mentality determines how far players go.

“What I like about our squad is that a lot of players have the mentality that they want to be amongst the best players in the world. That’s why we have a chance to progress and improve as a team. So how far a player can go is entirely up to them.”

Resurgent goalkeeper Tom Heaton joins Rice in the squad for the Euro 2020 double-header, having shone for Burnley after fighting his way back into the side from a shoulder injury that ruled him out of the World Cup. He’s selected alongside fellow goalkeepers Jordan Pickford and Jack Butland.

Southgate has kept faith with Kieran Trippier, despite questions over fitness and form, while James Tarkowski and Harry Maguire return to the squad as Lewis Dunk and the injured Joe Gomez drop out.

Harry Winks and Jesse Lingard have not been risked due to groin and hamstring issues respectively, but Callum Wilson has done enough on his return from a seven-week lay-off to be included again.

Declan Rice has been handed a first England call-up by Gareth Southgate (Getty)

Crystal Palace’s Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Saints goalkeeper Angus Gunn are highly rated by Southgate but have both missed out, with preparations for this summer’s Under-21 European Championship taking precedence.

England squad in full:

Goalkeepers: Tom Heaton, Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ben Chilwell, Michael Keane, Harry Maguire, Danny Rose, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker, James Tarkowski

Midfielders: Ross Barkley, Dele Alli, Fabian Delph, Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Declan Rice

Forwards: Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Raheem Sterling, Callum Wilson