Arsenal legend urges Southgate to take England captain from Harry Kane and give it to 23-year-old

Former Arsenal captain Tony Adams believes Gareth Southgate should make Declan Rice his England captain, with Harry Kane stripped of the armband.

Kane missed a late penalty in England's 2-1 loss to France in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

The Tottenham striker had equalized from the spot earlier, but Olivier Giroud's header sent the defending champions into the last four of the tournament.

It was a heartbreaking World Cup exit for Southgate and his players, who will have to wait another 18 months to compete for a major trophy.

The investigation has begun, and many are calling on Southgate to resign or be sacked by the Football Association.

However, there is one big change that former England defender Adams wants to see, and that is who will wear the armband.

Kane, 29, was named skipper of the Three Lions shortly before the 2018 World Cup.

He helped his team reach the semi-finals of this tournament before a loss in the Euro 2020 final against Italy.

Adams thinks the man who missed that crucial penalty against France should lose the armband - not because of that miss, by the way - with West Ham skipper Rice taking over.

Rice became Hammers captain following the retirement of Mark Noble and is one of the few undisputed starters for England, alongside Kane, John Stones and Jordan Pickford.

Adams wrote for The Sun: "We have some good players but I stand by the change of captain. Harry Kane is No.9 and has not escaped responsibility for having missed this penalty.

"But we have to think about what we do now with the captain.

"It's more of a problem than the coach and, as I said before, I think Declan Rice should get the job.

"Will Kane be the shining star for the next two tournaments?

"When are we going to get to the point where we take it off and change it?

"It's hard to do when he's captain.

"Southgate and Kane are a pair, though, and there's such a strong bond there.

“It is another matter for the experienced man to advise and persuade the manager to effect this change.”

England would have faced Morocco's dark horses in the World Cup semi-finals if they had beaten France.

Kane has scored twice at the World Cup and provided three assists for his teammates.

He will soon return to Spurs training with the Premier League resuming on Boxing Day.

The 29-year-old has scored 13 goals in 22 appearances in all competitions this season for the Londoners.

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