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England’s star midfielder and vice-captain Declan Rice has recovered from the illness, but a final decision on his playing in the FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-final against Argentina will be taken just before the match. England head coach Thomas Tuchel is keeping a close eye on his fitness and will wait for the final training session before making a final decision.

Rice fell ill before the quarter-final match against Norway. According to reports, he remained in bed for three days before the match. Despite this, he started the match, but looked uncomfortable in the first half and was called off the field at half-time. Now his health is much better than before and he also did regular training with the team on Monday.

However, apart from the illness, Rice is also suffering from hamstring and back pain. Despite this, the 27-year-old midfielder is confident that he will be fully prepared to make the starting eleven against Argentina. Rice, who has played 78 international matches, has been a part of the starting team in almost all of England’s matches in this World Cup. He could not play only the group stage match against Panama due to injury.

The England team will have its last practice session at its training center in Kansas City before the semi-finals. After this, the players will be given a recovery session and then the entire team will leave for Atlanta, where the semi-finals will be played. Tuchel will also inspect the stadium before the match with three players.

Both England and Argentina have fought hard to reach the semi-finals. England defeated Congo DR, Mexico and Norway in the knockout stage to reach the last four. On the other hand, defending world champions Argentina continued their campaign by defeating teams like Cabo Verde, Egypt and Switzerland.

The semi-final between England and Argentina will be played on Thursday at 12:30 IST (AM).