Declan Rice speaks of England players' deep admiration for manager Gareth Southgate

England players want manager Gareth Southgate to remain as England manager after the Euro 2024 final, says midfielder Declan Rice.

Southgate's side face Spain in Berlin on Sunday evening having reached back-to-back European Championship finals.

England will be aiming to end a 58-year wait to land a major men's trophy after a string of dramatic knockout games led them to the German capital.

Despite being widely criticised earlier in the summer, Southgate now has the chance to go one better than the penalty shootout loss to Italy in the Euro 2020 final three years ago.

His contract expires in December and it remains to be seen if he will stay in place, with the 53-year-old himself claiming he has not considered his future during the tournament.

But, after reports began to surface that the Football Association is keen to keep him at the helm for the 2026 World Cup, Rice was pleased with the news.

"I woke up to the news this morning that the FA wanted him to stay until '26," Rice said on Friday evening.

"This journey and this road that he has been on has been so special. Hopefully we can do something special for him for sure and I know for a fact the lads would love him to stay on until '26, there's no doubt about that.

"The way he looks after us, how calm he is, how he is as a man-manager, how he is on the training pitch with us, he's top."

As Southgate insists any thoughts on his future remain on the back-burner for now, Rice said there had been no conversations in camp about it either.

"None of us have spoken to him," revealed Arsenal's £105million club-record signing.

"That's none of our business. Whatever he wants to do, whatever makes him happy, I'm sure he'll make the right decision. But I'm sure he's got the backing of everyone to stay on."

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