England wrestle with Mbappe conundrum
England manager Gareth Southgate is wrestling with the biggest dilemma of his reign as he tries to plot a way to stop the "sensational" Kylian Mbappe in Saturday's World Cup quarter-final.
Southgate's hopes of leading England to a third successive semifinal at major tournaments hinge on finding a solution to a problem that has proved impossible for any team to solve in Qatar.
Just how do you subdue a player with Mbappe's lethal combination of electric pace, balletic skill and clinical finishing?
Poland defender Matty Cash summed up the conundrum posed by Mbappe after the Paris Saint-Germain forward's brilliant two goals in France's 3-1 last-16 victory on Sunday.
"I didn't know whether to drop off or go tight," Cash said. "When I went tight he just spun in behind. When he gets the ball, stops and moves, he's the quickest thing I've ever seen.
"He's a different level. Speed, movement, look at his finishing. He's got everything."
Four years after playing a key role in France's World Cup triumph in Russia, Mbappe is the tournament's most feared player.
The 23-year-old already has five goals in four games in Qatar, while his haul of nine career World Cup goals puts him level with Argentina's Lionel Messi and one ahead of Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Now it is Southgate's turn to sit the daunting Mbappe exam.
"Look, he is a world-class player who is always producing the moments when they are needed. That is what those top players do. That is the challenge we face," Southgate said.
So what will Southgate do to combat Mbappe's threat?
England full-back Kyle Walker says his team cannot afford to obsess about France's free-scoring forward. Right-back Walker is likely to be directly up against Mbappe.
"I know he's a top player but we're not playing tennis. It's not a solo sport, it's a team game," Walker said. "We know he's a great player and that's why he's the focus of all questions. But let's not forget (Olivier) Giroud, who has scored countless (goals), (Ousmane) Dembele, for me just as good on the other wing."
Walker has come up against Mbappe for Manchester City in the Champions League and said the lesson was not to over-focus on the 23-year-old.
"When we played PSG in the Champions League, we were not just thinking of Mbappe and it's going to be the same. Yes he's a tool in their armoury -- and a very good one -- but you can't underestimate their other players," he said.
"I can't think of another right-back in the world that I'd want to put up against him," former England defender Gary Neville said of Walker's chances of subduing Mbappe.
"Kyle will go closer to him, he has more pace than the Polish defenders. That's not to say Kyle will mark him out of the game. This is a sensational player, the new best player in the world."
As well as Walker winning his one-on-one duels with Mbappe, Neville believes it is essential to reduce his service from Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann. "If they can stop the service to Giroud and Griezmann in that central area, it means Mbappe's receiving far less dangerous passes," Neville said.
But no matter how much England plan, Cash knows from painful experience that nothing can truly prepare them. "I spent the afternoon watching his clips, but I'm watching the videos while lying in bed. In real life, he's burning my legs, that's the difference, he said.
Comments