The fall-out from Declan Rice's decision to opt for England over Ireland continues. For some it was expected, for others, it was a serious shock. According to former Irish international John O'Shea "a few people behind the scenes" did not anticipate the move.
O'Shea was speaking on BBC 5 Live Sport. The Reading defender argued that the rule should be changed so that a senior appearance, competitive or otherwise, locks a player in with a country.
The way Declan spoke and how he kind of... He's a great lad. He's a great player. I was just thinking, obviously I knew my time was up with the Irish team and I see this lad involved with training, settling in with everyone. I thought 'wow.' Obviously, England came calling and different things happened and his mind was changed.
People were confident that he was still going to choose Ireland. A few people behind the scenes were hopeful that he was going to pick Ireland but it wasn't to be. It's done with now and you move on. You can avoid all this questioning if you change the rule.
"The situation shouldn't be allowed to happen" - John O'Shea
Should Declan Rice be able to play for England after playing for the Republic of Ireland?
O'Shea says the rules need to change.#bbcfootball pic.twitter.com/roSlhQdnw8
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) February 18, 2019
As O'Shea touched on, he did, in fact, play alongside Rice for Ireland including for his final game against the USA.
Rice is still awaiting international clearance to play for England, although the West Ham club man did clarify that his recent statement was not prompted by an assumption he would play for Gareth Southgate's side: "In requesting to transfer my national representation, I am not taking for granted a call-up to the England squad or making any assumptions about my future international career."
