London: Declan Rice says "there is work to be done" if England are to go far at Euro 2024 after a shock defeat to lowly Iceland in their final game before the tournament starts. What was supposed to be a relatively straightforward friendly instead ended in an alarming 1-0 loss to a nation ranked 72nd in the world, who will not be in Germany. Jon Dagur Thorsteinsson gave Iceland a shock early lead at Wembley and Gareth Southgate's lacklustre England could not find a response.
Swathes of supporters left before full-time, with some of those still at the stadium jeering the home team at the final whistle. England's campaign kicks off against Group C rivals Serbia next Sunday and Rice knows improvements are required for the Euro 2020 runners-up, who have not won a major trophy since the 1966 World Cup. "There's work to be done," said the Arsenal midfielder, 25.
"When you have that much of the ball, have a couple of clear-cut chances, and get beaten 1-0 at home just before the Euros it isn't ideal." Despite the unexpected setback, Rice believes England can still take some positives from their display. "There were a lot of promising performances, we played with a good tempo, always tried to play forward.
We have to be a little bit more savvy," he told englandfootball.com. "It's not ideal we lost but there are good learning curves we can build on as a team.
" Anthony Gordon, who played on the left side of England's attack, said fans should not be concerned despite the disappointing re.