Declan Rice believes the World Cup big guns should FEAR England at Qatar 2022.
Brazil and France have established themselves as tournament favourites but Rice insists Gareth Southgate's team is as strong as ANY who have qualified for the knockout stages.
"Why should we not be feared?" asked Rice as he prepared to face Senegal in Sunday's last-16 showdown. "We are one of the biggest teams here. I think other nations will always look at us and think about the quality we've got in the squad.
"If you look at our attacking players, there are world class, unbelievable talents across the board. Across the whole team, there are players who have played in the biggest games, won the biggest trophies."
The winners of the England-Senegal clash will play either France or Poland in the last eight and Rice believes the 2018 World Cup winners set the benchmark for the Three Lions.
He went on: "We are one of the biggest teams but it is down to us to prove it on the pitch. Teams like the French have proved that. They've done it consistently. Now we want to change that. All those big nations, we want to show them we're here.
"We're not just here to get into the round of 16. We want to go the whole way."
When the England players first arrived for World Cup duty at St George's Park in the middle of last month, Rice was seen carrying an empty suitcase. And he knows exactly what he would like to carry home in it when he heads back to England.
Rice said: "The case was actually for spare clothes. Going back to the Euros, I remember we were given so much stuff, and I knew that taking a spare case would be needed to take stuff home. It's actually full up right now in my room with spare clothes and trainers. But it would be nice to bring the World Cup trophy home in it."
And as the economic crisis and winter weather take a grip on people back home, Rice hopes Southgate's men can raise their spirits, saying: "We will try to keep going, try to lift everyone, it's obviously really close to Christmas now so hopefully we'll give them the best Christmas present."
