England coach Gareth Southgate says West Ham midfielder Declan Rice is now crucial to his plans.
Southgate says Rice could play a "critical" role for England at the European Championship amid doubts over Jordan Henderson's involvement at the tournament this summer.
Speaking about how Rice has become a key player for England, Southgate said ahead of Sunday's World Cup qualifier against Albania: "You only have to watch his club to see how many balls he regains every Saturday. You have got to have that balance.
"We cannot be a team that just look good with the ball, create and score, we have got to stop opponents from playing, be hard to play against, and keep clean sheets. So the balance of that is really important.
"Defenders have to defend and that protection just in front of them is really important.
“So the likes of Declan, the likes of Kalvin Phillips, James Ward-Prowse, Jordan Henderson, those types of players who can do both sides of the game, they can use the ball well but also do an important job defensively, that is critical for a team to function."
