Declan Rice has been left out of England's squad(Image: Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta handed crucial Declan Rice injury update ahead of Chelsea

07 Nov 2024, 14:03 by Josh Holland · football.london

Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has been named in England's 26-man squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures against Greece and the Republic of Ireland.

The Gunners ace missed Wednesday night's Champions League defeat to Inter Milan after missing training beforehand. Rice played in Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Newcastle and there are fears he could miss Sunday's London derby with Chelsea.

However, on Thursday, Three Lions interim boss Lee Carsley named his squad for the final international break of 2025 and the midfielder was named.

The news will come as a boost for Arsenal, with it implying he may deemed fit to play at the weekend. Before the defeat in Italy, Arteta confirmed the club would assess Rice before Chelsea. "Declan unfortunately picked an injury against Newcastle," he said.

"He was able to finish and he wasn’t feeling good the last few days. We’ll have to assess him on Thursday and see if he’s ready for Chelsea."

Arteta is set to face the media on Friday where he will be faced with questions on Rice's fitness and availability for the weekend. Bukayo Saka was also named in the Three Lions squad despite previous fears of his workload.

Chelsea's Cole Palmer was also included in the squad despite also being a doubt for Sunday's game. Palmer hasn't trained since Sunday's draw with Manchester United after being on the receiving end of a nasty challenge from Lisandro Martinez.