Kylian Mbappe: The French striker missed the open training session before the match against England in the quarter-finals of the World Cup | Football news
England assistant coach Steve Holland says France star Kylian Mbappe is one of the few players on the planet that needs “special attention”.
Mbappe missed France’s open training session on Tuesday – just four days before the World Cup quarter-final against England on Saturday.
The PSG forward, the top scorer in the league with five goals, has undergone a private rehab.
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Sky Sports chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol analyzes Kylian Mbappe’s absence at France’s open training session and whether England should pay attention
However, the 23-year-old gave England a headache when his assistant helped devise a plan to keep Lionel Messi quiet when Chelsea shocked Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals in 2012.
“I think there are some players on the planet that you need to pay special attention to,” Holland said. “Messi was one and probably still is.
“You have to put Mbappe in the category that I recommend.
“We need to consider trying to avoid putting ourselves in situations where he’s devastating like we’ve all seen. We have to try to find a way to avoid that.
“I remember talking to (Jose) Mourinho about it a long time ago when he was at Real Madrid, they played Barcelona and they had (Cristiano) Ronaldo.
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France’s all-time top scorer Olivier Giroud says the world has yet to see Kylian Mbappe’s best striker
“(Dani) Alves will be Barcelona’s right-back and up front, he will play a soldier against him to try to stop him.
“But then, of course, you won’t get any threat to your team from the soldier because you’re just stopping someone, you’re not really hurting them.
“Then he will try to put Ronaldo against him, directly, one-on-one because Alves is great in attack but maybe as a result not quite so good in defence.
“Everyone has their pluses and minuses. It’s a cat and mouse game, yes, we still have to deal with him but we also have to try to exploit the weakness that his super strength brings, if i’ i mean.
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Former Arsenal striker Alan Smith reveals how poorly England have performed against ‘top teams’ in their World Cup history and why Kylian Mbappe is worth watching
“Trying to adapt your team to solve that problem while still trying to create your own problem, I think that’s a challenge.
“I like to think that we’re not just going to find a way to stop a player, but we’re going to try to do everything we can to limit his superpowers while still trying to focus on his own strengths. because we have good players.
“Players capable of causing trouble for France are like Mbappe for us. We have to find that balance.”
‘England vs France is a 50-50 match’
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Former England striker Alan Smith gives his opinion on England’s 3-0 win over Senegal and assesses how the top teams at the World Cup are likely to concede a goal.
England players were given the day off on Tuesday but staff had begun to prepare in earnest, listening to an in-depth report on France at 9am on Monday, having returned from the match against Senegal six hours earlier. .
Tim Dittmer, head of coaching for the Football Association, has been following the defending champions for the past two years and gave a presentation on the opponents on Saturday.
“It’s a 50-50 game in my eyes,” Holland said. “If you play against weaker opponents and you play well, you will get results.
“It’s a challenge. We can play well and still not get results. The score is 50-50 with special players who can suddenly create something out of nothing.
“But I think the whole team is really well equipped for the journey that can take place in this quarter-final. It could be a long night. I feel we are as ready as we are to get through. that.”
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Bukayo Saka was asked about comparisons to France’s World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe but insisted ‘there’s only one Mbappe, like there’s only one me’
Holland believes England have “the perfect opportunity” to prepare players tactically and physically for this week’s schedule, adding there is “no excuse” to head into the weekend. .
It’s about building on what they’ve done, he said, rather than going back to the beginning as onlookers wonder if they’ll stick with a four-man defence or go back to a five-man defence.
Holland does not “fully agree” with the perception that the second approach is a more negative one, saying it is about how they can “take advantage of the attributes the country has given us”.
“I think the challenge for us before the tournament and before every game that we play now is to look at what we have, what tools we have in the pocket,” Holland said.
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Former England defender Wes Brown backs the Three Lions to beat France 2-1 and says Gareth Southgate shouldn’t change squad just because of Kylian Mbappe
“Look at the problems the opponent will cause us, their weaknesses, and try to think of something that gives us the best chance of winning the game.
“It sounds a bit obvious but it’s true but to win tournaments you need to be the best team in Europe or the world in both penalty areas.
“There’s going to be a lot of opinions on how you go from one box to another – different countries will do it in different ways and there is no right or wrong – but usually in two penalty areas that’s the law.”
