Rice overlooked as next England captain after Kane is a ‘no-brainer’ – Agbonlahor
Gabby Agbonlahor has stated it’s a “no-brainer” who the next England captain will be after Harry Kane, and he’s adamant it’s not going to be Declan Rice.
The Three Lions have reached their second World Cup semi-final in the last three tournaments. They’ll face holders Argentina in the semis, and a large portion of the fanbase is confident.
Should England reach the final, it would be only the second time in history that they’ll play in it.
At the tournament so far, Kane and Jude Bellingham have been the standouts for Thomas Tuchel’s side, with both men on six goals and an assist each.
Agbonlahor feels when the time comes that Kane hangs up his boots, his fellow superstar is the obvious choice to take the captain’s armband.
He told talkSPORT: “He’s the next England captain. Let’s not get it twisted, people talk about Declan Rice, no it’s not – Jude Bellingham is the next England captain after Harry Kane.
“No-brainer. Say no more.
“He reminds me of Zidane, the way he plays and stuff. He’s dragging this team through at the moment. I think he’s world class, I really do.
“And also, you listen to him off the pitch, he’s got a real calmness about him as well. And I think he’s the next England captain after Harry Kane.
“I think he’s been excellent and really dragging this team through.”
Rice and Bellingham as captains
Bellingham became the youngest Bundesliga captain ever when he donned the Borussia Dortmund armband at 19 years of age in 2022.
Tuchel’s predecessor, Gareth Southgate, knew Bellingham could be a future England captain, stating: “he’s definitely got leadership qualities.”
But as has Rice, who has more experience of captaincy. He did it a couple of times for Arsenal last season, and previously led West Ham to UEFA Conference League glory with the armband.
READ: Paul Scholes, John Terry make bold England vs Argentina predictions – ‘it will be chaos’
He has also captained England twice, in friendlies against Belgium and Wales – the latter of those games came during current manager Tuchel’s tenure.
Bellingham wore the Three Lions armband in the second half of the World Cup warm up against New Zealand in June, but wasn’t in possession of it at the start of the game.
Given both men have captained England during Tuchel’s tenure, he may see either as viable options for it in the future.
READ MORE: Alan Shearer urges Thomas Tuchel to make two changes for England vs Argentina – ‘I wasn’t surprised’
