Declan Rice reacts to Ezri Konsa’s message after England dominate v Latvia
Ezri Konsa gave England fans a taste of his solid Aston Villa form during the most recent international break.
The 27-year-old was called up to Thomas Tuchel’s first-ever Three Lions squad after impressing for the Villans throughout the 2024-25 campaign, and it proved to be a successful camp.
Konsa was one of three Villa players to feature in the squad as Marcus Rashford was brought back into the fold and Morgan Rogers was given the chance to impress.
England kickstarted their World Cup 2026 qualification campaign with a 2-0 win against Albania (21 March) and followed that up with a comfortable 3-0 win over Latvia on Monday night (24 March).
Konsa was the only defender to play every single minute of both games, as he played a significant role in England keeping consecutive clean sheets.
Konsa was dominant for England
Konsa didn’t put a foot wrong for England against Latvia, despite being the most fouled player on the pitch.
The Villa centre-back provided a stunning 98 per cent pass accuracy while he made 109 touches as he highlighted his ball-playing skills that could be crucial in how Tuchel wants his team to set up.
Konsa even managed to showcase the attacking threat that he possesses by having two shots on target.
| Match Stats | Konsa |
| Ground Duels Won | 7/10 (70%) |
| Aerial Duels Won | 1/3 (33%) |
| Recoveries | 5 |
| Clearances | 1 |
After the game, Konsa took to Instagram to share photos from England’s win by writing, “2/2. Signing out for now, England.”
His post gained plenty of responses from his England teammates as Dominic Solanke wrote, “Coldest,” while Declan Rice called him the “general”, evidently being impressed by Konsa’s performance.
Konsa could establish himself for England
Konsa is one of the first names on Unai Emery’s team sheet at this point for Villa, but under Gareth Southgate, he struggled to truly establish himself as a first-choice defender.
That’s something that the centre-back could look to change as Tuchel determines who his regular pairing will be in the heart of the defence.
The new England boss isn’t short of options with Marc Guehi and Dan Burn being given opportunities during this international break, but the fact that Konsa started both games is a positive sign that he’s high in the pecking order at the moment.
Konsa delivered impressive performances in both of the World Cup qualifiers, which would have done him no harm as Tuchel now begins to plan for the next set of fixtures.