"We are not going to fully focus on him” – Shaw makes bold claim about battle with Mbappe as England prepare for FIFA World Cup quarter-final
England left-back Luke Shaw has insisted that the Three Lions will not fully focus on France forward Kylian Mbappe ahead of their FIFA World Cup quarter-final clash.
Gareth Southgate's men face reigning world champions Les Bleus on Saturday, 10 December.
It is a tantalizing quarter-final between two of the competition's strongest sides.
France frontman Mbappe, 23, has been irrepressible so far in Qatar, scoring five goals and contributing two assists in six appearances.
The Paris Saint-Germain attacker scored two fantastic strikes in a 3-1 win over Poland in the last 16.
Meanwhile, England sealed their place in the quarter-finals against Le Bleus with an impressive 3-0 victory over Senegal.
Much of the pre-match talk concerns how the Three Lions will deal with the threat of France's number 10 in the FIFA World Cup quarter-final.
However, Shaw has boldly claimed that England are not putting all their concentration on the PSG striker despite deeming him a world-class player.
He said (via Manchester United's official website):
"We managed to watch the end of the [France] game on the coach and after his [Mbappe's] performance, there is going to be even more chat about him, and we know he is a world-class player."
Shaw believes it would be naive to just focus on the PSG attacker as Didier Deschamps boasts a squad that have won the FIFA World Cup:
"But I think it would be very naive of us to focus purely on him. They are world champions for a reason, because they have brilliant players all over the whole pitch, so we are not going to fully focus on him."
Gary Neville believes England's Kyle Walker to nullify Mbappe's threat in the FIFA World Cup quarter-final clash
Former England captain Neville has tipped Manchester City right-back, Walker, to be able to deal with the threat posed by the PSG frontman.
The French forward will likely be playing down England's right-hand flank in their FIFA World Cup quarter-final clash.
This lends itself to Walker being tasked with dealing with the Frenchman.
Walker has come up against the French striker on three occasions for City, with the latter scoring one goal and providing an assist.
Neville believes he is the perfect candidate for the role as he can match the striker's speed and physicality.
He said:
"I think we have the best right-back in the world to be able to deal with Kylian Mbappe."
The United icon continued,
"In terms of physicality, pace and experience, I can't think of anyone better to match Mbappe than Kyle Walker. That's not to say he'll keep him quiet for 90 minutes as Mbappe is sensational and special. But we have a chance as Walker can match him in certain areas."