Declan Rice is enjoying playing for “incredible” England interim coach Lee Carsley

England midfielder Declan Rice says the team loves playing under interim coach Lee Carsley and does not need clarity over his future.

Carsley was appointed as Gareth Southgate’s temporary successor in August, initially for the Nations League season over the three international windows in the autumn.

However, the 50-year-old, who has stepped down from his role as U21 coach, has since faced embarrassment as he discussed whether he would want the job permanently.

After Thursday’s shock defeat to Greece at Wembley, he said he would “hopefully” return to his role with the under-21s, before saying in a television interview on Sunday that the job would be given to a “world-class manager”. should be a 3-1 win in Finland.

But just minutes later, he said at his post-match press conference in Helsinki that he would “definitely” not rule himself out of the running for the permanent job.

For all the circus surrounding his future, Rice says it has no impact on the players.

Asked if the squad needed clarity, the Arsenal midfielder, who scored the final goal in England’s 3-1 win in Helsinki, said on BBC Radio 5 Live: “No, not at all. When he came back in September he made it clear to us that he would take care of us for three camps.

“With the way he was and the way we played, I think he was unbelievable.

“It’s the first time I’ve worked with him because I haven’t worked with the under-21s yet but the 21-year-olds who came in couldn’t speak highly enough of him.

“We as older players are not surprised, but we have said how good he has been in meetings and games and how he is taking to training.

“He’s one of those managers… look at Jack Grealish, he put an arm around him, gave him confidence, those are the things players love and Lee did that.”

“He was great for us. Whatever happens, happens, but for now we’re all enjoying this journey.”

Thursday’s defeat to Greece at Wembley, where Carsley played as a front five with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka, seemed like a hammer blow to his chances of getting the job permanently.

But Rice says the players should take responsibility for this defeat and the blame shouldn’t lie with Carsley.

“I don’t think so, I think it counts against us, we were the problem on Thursday night,” he said.

“There were too many subpar performances. It was a different game when we scored goals. That’s on us, not Lee.”