ENGLAND take on France on Saturday night aiming to dethrone the reigning world champions.
Gareth Southgate’s men have so far advanced to the World Cup quarter-finals relatively unscathed, but now face their biggest test by a mile.
France may be without the likes of Karim Benzema, Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kante – but they remain a formidable prospect all the same.
And with Kylian Mbappe in their side, they’ll be a tough team to stop.
Other than in their opening match against Iran, the Three Lions have looked a sturdy side defensively.
But Southgate will now have to ponder whether to make adjustments in order to try and combat the threat of Mbappe.
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On France’s incredible star, the England boss said: “As for Kylian Mbappe, he is a world-class player. He has already delivered high-quality performances in other tournaments of this level.
“But I think that Antoine Griezmann has more than 100 caps and he is phenomenal as well. We know Olivier Giroud very well. In the midfield, there are young players that are doing incredible things.
“When you look at France closely, there is talent in every position. It is a big test for us to face.”
So with the stage set, let’s take a look at how Southgate could choose to line up.
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4-3-3
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, as they say.
England easily swatted aside Senegal with a professional performance on Sunday, so would it hurt to keep the same line-up?
Kyle Walker is one of the very few defenders in world football that can match Mbappe for pace, so it would seem to be lunacy if he didn’t start.
Neither John Stones or Harry Maguire are going to be budged, while the Three Lions don’t have a back up to Luke Shaw.
The midfield unit of Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice and Jordan Henderson worked well last time out, so why the need to change?
With Raheem Sterling back in England with his family after a traumatic burglary at his house, Phil Foden’s place on the left seems secure.
While Bukayo Saka could be the perfect man to get at Theo Hernandez and feed Harry Kane… knowing that Mbappe won’t be tracking back down that side.
3-4-3
Southgate primarily used his three at the back formation during England’s ill-fated Nations League campaign, but has so far left it at home during this tournament.
With the threat of Mbappe looming, however, might he decide that now is the time to turn to it?
He may deduce that adding extra cover to help Walker against the 23-year-old may be a good idea.
This would see him sacrifice an attacker in order to get Kieran Trippier into the team, with Walker tucking into the three.
This sounds good on paper, but whether or not the mid-tournament formation change would benefit the team in practice remains to be seen.
Trippier’s crossing does always add an extra dimension, however, and Marcus Rashford could come into the side looking to add to his two World Cup goals so far.
4-3-3 (alternate)
Realistically it seems that England will either play 4-3-3 or 3-4-3, having not really dabbled with much else in recent years.
Even if Southgate does stick with the tried and tested, however, he could still opt to mix up his personnel a little bit to spring a surprise on the French.
Mason Mount could return to the team fresh and energised, adding some extra creativity to the middle of the park.
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While Southgate could even opt to unleash Jack Grealish from the start.
The £100million man has had to be content with coming off the bench so far, but will be eager to show what he can do in more minutes.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
