England will face their toughest test of the World Cup on Saturday as they go head-to-head with defending champions France in the quarter-finals.
The biggest threat to Gareth Southgate’s team is Paris Saint-Germain superstar Killian Mbappe, who has been incredible throughout the tournament so far, scoring five goals and assisting a further two in Les Bleus’ four matches.
Most of the talk in the English media in the build-up to the match has been about how England stop the feared forward, but Gareth Southgate has a plan that he has been conjuring up for two years.
According to the Independent, Southgate and his staff have created an Anti-Mbappe plan and have been preparing it for two years.
They believe that the best solution to deal with the PSG superstar is to place an equally dangerous player in front of him to exploit his defensive limitations.
This could see someone such as Phil Foden start on England’s right-hand side or Southgate could opt for the pace of Marcus Rashford instead and put the Man City star on the left.
Many coaches have tried their best to stop Mbappe and have failed, as the very best players always seem to find a way to have their say in matches.
If the Three Lions boss can find a way, however, this could be huge for England’s chances of progressing to the semi-finals.
? Gareth Southgate and his staff have an ANTI-MBAPPÉ plan and have been preparing it for two years!
They believe the best solution to deal with Mbappé is to place an equally dangerous player in front of him to exploit his defensive limitations.
(Source: Independent) pic.twitter.com/zlZzzNHYqQ
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