Gareth Southgate 'particularly impressed' by England star ahead of Euro 2024 opener against Serbia

It is a different England squad that will be targeting glory this time around, however.

Southgate has been bold with his squad selection, leaving out big names such as Harry Maguire, Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford.

Stalwarts such as Kalvin Phillips, Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling have also been snubbed, too.

And with England needing new leaders to step up, the Daily Mail say Southgate has been 'particularly impressed' with Rice.

The Arsenal star has been a regular in the England set-up ever since making his debut for the national side back in 2019.

Rice, despite being just 25, has already been capped 51 times over the past five years.

The report says Rice has taken on 'increasing responsibility' within the England camp as they prepare for Sunday's clash.

It's claimed his 'outgoing demeanour makes him an approachable character for the fledgling members of the squad'.

But Southgate is hoping others can step up, too, especially with so much experience left at home.

There is said to be a good mood within the England set-up, despite Friday's disappointing 1-0 defeat to Iceland at Wembley.

England reported to Rockliffe Park where they were based for much of Euro 2020, with the Three Lions going in to make the final that year.

A trip down memory lane, it seems, has paid off and been key to ensuring things stay harmonious behind the scenes.

England have been treated to a performance from pop star James Bay, who performed a private gig behind the scenes.

They are said to be intrigued over who will perform for them next, having already been treated to songs by Ed Sheeran and Robbie Williams in the past.

For many in the camp, they reportedly enjoyed seeing England cricket star Ben Stokes.

Stokes spoke to the squad openly for 90 minutes, reflecting on when the Three Lions won the World Cup back in 2019.

The 33-year-old 'stressed the importance of maintaining a view on the bigger picture', effectively urging them to drown out any outside noise.

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And captain Harry Kane has admitted England must use their 1-0 defeat to Iceland on Friday as a 'wake-up call' as they look to end 58 years of hurt.

"This could be a nice wake-up call for everyone to realise it is not going to be as easy as people think," he said.

"There is a lot of work to do. Sometimes, you need this wake-up call.

"There are areas we need to improve, especially with our pressure. The group games are going to be very similar to this.

"We are going to have to defend well, especially the longer balls, and with the ball we need to be a bit more patient.

"It is one to look back on."

He added: "We fell below our standards without the ball and that is something we have to review and get better with.

"We had spells where we did well and played some really nice football and created some good chances.

"But against these types of teams especially, you have to be more clinical.

"There probably wasn’t enough hunger in the duels, in the second balls and winning those.

"They are a big important part when you are playing these teams, to sustain the pressure and really suffocate them. We didn’t do that well."