Kyle Walker Sends Warning To Kylian Mbappé Ahead Of Quarter-Final Clash Between England And France In The 2022 World Cup.

England's right-back, Kyle Walker, has sent warning to Kylian Mbappe, making it clear he won’t “roll out a red carpet” for the France forward.

England take on the reigning champions France in the mouth-watering quarter-final fixture in Qatar on Saturday, December 10, in what is the first knockout match between the two nations at a major tournament.

The Three Lions had defeated African champions Senegal 3-0 in their last-16 match, while France also progressed smoothly with a 3-1 win over Poland, with Mbappe scoring twice in that French victory and the forward has now been involved in his team's last seven World Cup goals.

Walker, 32, who has been branded as England's antidote to Mbappe's attacking threat, is likely to start in defense for the Three Lions on the day.

Mbappe is currently the top scorer in the tournament with five goals in four matches and on course of to win the Golden Boot, but the 23-year-old did not train with the rest of the Les Bleus squad on Tuesday.

He only returned to full training with the France team on Wednesday after undergoing a recovery session.

Both Walker and Mbappe, have had many thrilling battles together at club level, coming up against each other four times when Manchester City clashed with Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.

City won three out of the four encounters, with Mbappe scoring just once in their most recent encounter which the Premier League side won 2-1.

In Wednesday's press conference Walker, promised to make life as tough as possible on Mbappe when the pair battle for a place in the semi-final, and the PSG man won't "stand in my way of winning a World Cup" 

“The game is not England v Mbappe; It is England vs France.

“We respect that he is a good player in good form at the minute. But I’m not going to roll out a red carpet for him and tell him to go and score.

“I am representing my country in the quarter-final of a World Cup so it is do-or-die really. He is not going to stand in my way of hopefully winning a World Cup for my country,”... Walker said.

“When we've played in the four times against PSG for Man City in the Champions League, you're not just thinking about Mbappe. I think it is exactly the same on Saturday.

“He's a tool in their armoury that is very good, we know that - that is why all of the questions are about him.

“We should appreciate that we are seeing a great footballer, but there are other good players as well, and we can't underestimate them. They have players that have won big titles, won World Cups.

“Let's not forget about Olivier Giroud, who has scored countless goals for France and in the Premier League. Ousmane Dembele, who for me is just as good on the other wing and a very tricky player. And then you have Antoine Griezmann - these players can cause you a problem.”

When asked if he understands why there is so much hype about this individual battle, Walker said: "Of course I do, I play football. I understand what I need to do and that is obviously to stop him. It's probably easier said than done.

"But I don't underestimate myself. As I said before, I've played him before and come up against great players in my time playing for England, Man City and the clubs I have played for.

"I have to treat it as another game. I have to take extra care and give him the respect he deserves, but not too much respect because he is also playing England and we can cause him problems.

"It is going to be a tough game, but not one player makes a team."

Gareth Southgate's men have kept three successive clean sheets - one shy of their national record at a World Cup achieved in both 1966 and 1982.

At the other end of the pitch, the Three Lions have scored 12 goals in four games - equalling their highest tally at a single World Cup.

Having reached the last four in Russia in 2018, and the European Championship final in 2021, Walker believes there is no favourite as they prepare to face the defending champions.