'Naive to focus purely on Mbappe', warns Luke Shaw ahead of England vs France World Cup 2022 quarter-finals
By Sunita Iyer | First Published Dec 6, 2022, 5:54 PM ISTLuke Shaw has warned England that it would be 'naive' of them to focus on stopping Kylian Mbappe ahead of their Qatar World Cup 2022 quarter-final against France.
England's quarter-final clash against defending champions France at the Qatar World Cup 2022 has created a massive buzz among football enthusiasts worldwide. Ahead of Saturday night's high-octane encounter, Luke Shaw has cautioned his teammates that it would be "naive" of them to concentrate only on stopping sensational forward Kylian Mbappe.
Latest Videos
Mbappe has been the tournament's star performer and is now in the lead for the Golden Boot with five goals through four games, coupled with two assists for good measure. Although Shaw has cautioned his England teammates that France is the current world champs for a reason—they are more than just a one-person show—despite being the game's clear danger man.
"Obviously, after his performance (against Poland), there's going to be even more chat about him, but we know he's a world-class player," Shaw said.
"I think it would be very naive of us to focus purely on him. They're reigning world champions for a reason, and we need to focus on them as a whole team. They have brilliant players over the whole pitch so we're not going to fully focus on him, but it's an amazing tie to be involved in and that's why we're here," the Manchester United star added.
Along with Mbappe, France has depended on solid efforts from Antoine Griezmann, Adrien Rabiot, and Olivier Giroud, who has surpassed Thierry Henry to become the nation's all-time leading scorer.
"It's obviously not going to be easy. They are reigning world champions, and they are that for a reason," Shaw continued. "It will be a very tough game, and mentally we have to be ready and focused because we have to be at 100% to win this game, and we know that," Shaw remarked.
"It's been an amazing tournament, an unbelievable one to watch and it shows no game is easy. We always speak before about the favourites and this and that and when you come to a World Cup it's always different - the atmosphere, the game, the heat," the United left-back added.
"It's all things you need to get used to and I think you've seen with a couple of the big names you maybe think should be through are not and that shows we're obviously doing the right things at the moment, but I think we need to step up another level because France are a very good team," Shaw concluded.
Also read: Can France win second World Cup title in a row? Former PSG boss Pochettino responds
subscribe to Asianet Newsable WhatsApp channel by clicking here. For more reliable and latest news
subscribe to Asianet Newsable Telegram channel by clicking here.