Declan Rice, an England midfielder, explained why he chose not to celebrate his goal against Ireland, believing the supporters in Dublin were right to boo him.

Rice opened the scoring for England in the eleventh minute with a first-time strike inside the box.

Despite being surrounded by his teammates, the Arsenal player held his palms up and apologized.

Rice transferred his international allegiance from Ireland to England in February 2019, a goal that had been nearly five years in the making.

Rice had previously played three friendlies for Ireland but declined additional call-ups to represent the Three Lions.

 

Rice refused to celebrate after scoring the opener for England against Ireland in Dublin

 

The midfielder hammered home a first-time attempt inside the box in the eleventh minute.

Rice has subsequently gone on to play in two European Championship finals and a World Cup quarterfinal, opportunities he would not have had if he remained with Ireland.

However, the 25-year-old vowed that he would ‘never’ rejoice against the nation he formerly represented, and he provided a touching reason for this.

“Obviously it was an amazing feeling to score, but I was never going to celebrate,” Rice told beIN Sports following the victory.

‘My family is Irish. I believe it would have been disrespectful to my grandmother and grandfather, who are no longer with us, if I had celebrated. My father was present as well.

‘Obviously, scoring was a good feeling, but I wanted to focus on getting back into the game and scoring more goals.’

Rice’s subdued joy was in stark contrast to his England colleague and former Ireland junior international Jack Grealish.

Grealish added England’s second, but despite representing Ireland at the under-17, under-18, and under-21 levels, he was overjoyed to celebrate his goal.

Irish fans vented their displeasure at the two, booing every touch and holding flags aloft picturing Rice’s face next to images of a snake.

 

Rice revealed he did not celebrate because it would have been disrespectful to his family

 

Despite previously representing Ireland, Jack Grealish was only too glad to celebrate his goal.

Rice admitted that he and Grealish did not discuss the reception they expected before the game.

But no matter how long it had been since he swapped his allegiances, Rice believed Irish fans had every right to react as they saw fit.

Rice stated, “I think we’ve seen so much stuff recently.”

‘This occurred six to seven years ago. It’s been so long. I get along well with many of the Irish boys. I did not work very hard.

‘Obviously, the fans feel a certain way, which is perfectly great.’