Why didn't Declan Rice celebrate his England goal against Ireland? Arsenal star's link to the Republic explained

Dom Farrell

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Why didn't Declan Rice celebrate his England goal against Ireland? Arsenal star's link to the Republic explained image

Declan Rice smashed into the top corner in emphatic fashion to give England an early lead against the Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League.

The Arsenal midfield prompted wild celebrations from the travelling supporters behind the goal but elected not to join in.

As boos rained down from the other three sides of Dublin’s Aviva Stadium, Rice gestured with his hands down, signalling apologetically.

Surely there are few greater thrills than scoring for your country against a neighbouring nation, so what was going on?

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Why didn’t Declan Rice celebrate against Ireland?

If Rice’s non-celebration reminded you of when a player scores against their old team at club level, well… it’s because that’s basically what happened.

Saturday’s game was Rice’s 59th appearance for England but his 62nd full international cap.

As a 19-year-old, Rice played for the Republic of Ireland in three international friendlies between March and June 2018. 

Born in London, Rice was eligible to play for Ireland through his grandparents and also represented the nation at every age group level from under-16 to under-21 before playing for the seniors.

However, the fact he only ever played in friendlies meant Rice was free to change his allegiance and he did so in 2019, making his debut in a European Championship qualifier against Czechia in March of that year.

Did Jack Grealish celebrate against Ireland?

The other main subject of Irish ire during the game was Manchester City attacking midfielder Jack Grealish. Although never a full international like Rice, Grealish played for Ireland U17s and U21s before switching to England in the latter age group.

Grealish swept home to make it 2-0 at the Aviva Stadium, somewhat inevitably from a Rice pass. Making his international return after being dropped from Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad, the 28-year-old tore towards the England fans and celebrated with gusto.

Lee Carsley was taking charge of his first game as England interim manager, also bringing dual nationality into focus.

Carsley, like Grealish born in Birmingham, played for the Republic of Ireland 40 times. Like Southgate before him, he is stepping up from a stint as England U21s coach.

Prior to Saturday's fixture, Carsley stating that he would not sing the national anthem God Save The King before the match caused controversy in some quarters of the English press, although his stance appeared to have gained broad support by kickoff.

Dom Farrell

Dom Farrell Photo

Dom is the senior content producer for Sporting News UK. He previously worked as fan brands editor for Manchester City at Reach Plc. Prior to that, he built more than a decade of experience in the sports journalism industry, primarily for the Stats Perform and Press Association news agencies. Dom has covered major football events on location, including the entirety of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup in Paris and St Petersburg respectively, along with numerous high-profile Premier League, Champions League and England international matches. Cricket and boxing are his other major sporting passions and he has covered the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, Gennadiy Golovkin and Vasyl Lomachenko live from ringside.