West Ham starlet Declan Rice is set to turn his back on Republic of Ireland and declare his international allegiance to England.

The 19-year-old defender has already represented the Republic – who he qualified for through his grand-parents, and he has three caps.

However, all of his games for Martin O’Neill’s have been in friendlies which means he is still eligible to revert to England – the country of his birth.

Gareth Southgate has been impressed by Rice and has now made a move, and he is fully expected to turn out for England in the coming months.

Now Paddy Power have stopped taking bets on Rice pledging his international future to England.

Spokesman Paddy Power said: “From the moment this story came out, it surely pointed to only one thing. And, though all the bets initially were for Ireland, as the story’s developed, so too has the expectation that Rice will opt for England.

“As a result, we’ve suspended betting on Rice’s international future, sadly.”