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    Spain Wags enjoy ‘girl’s night out’ in Qatar at plush restaurant ahead of partners’ World Cup clash against Morocco

    SPAIN’S Wags went for a “girl’s night out” at a plush restaurant in Qatar last night.The glamorous group will be out in force to support their partners this afternoon as La Roja take on Morocco at Education City Stadium.
    Out for dinner were, from left to right and clockwise: Paula Batet (Pau Torres), Carmen Mora (Pablo Sarabia), Beatriz Espejel (Koke), Alice Campello (Alvaro Morata), Patricia Charlotte (Marcos Llorente), Laura Iglesias, Sira Martinez (Ferran Torres), Romarey Ventura (Jordi Alba), Nuria, Marta Marchena (Carlos Soler), Elena Galera (Sergio Busquets), Sandra Garal (Marco Asensio), Daphne Canizares (Dani Carvajal)Credit: https://www.instagram.com/beatrizespejel/
    While their other halves were going through their final preparations, Spain’s Wags let their hair down a little by enjoying a meal together.
    Eleven of the 26-man squad’s partners went to Spanish restaurant Tatel in Doha.
    After the fun night out, midfielder Koke’s wife Beatriz Espejel shared a group picture from the outing to her 156,000 followers.
    She captioned it: “Spanish Girls Team Night out!”
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    Among the group were a mix of Wags of more experienced players, as well as those whose partners are at their first World Cup.
    Romarey Ventura, Elena Galera, Alice Campello and Daphne Canizares, partners of Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Alvaro Morata and Dani Carvajal have experienced it all before.
    While for some others, it is a more novel experience.
    Pau Torres’ girlfriend Paula Batet stood next to Pablo Sarabia’s other half Carmen Mora for the photo.
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    Sandra Garal is dating Marco AsensioCredit: Instagram / @ssandragaral
    Marta Marchena’s boyfriend is Carlos SolerCredit: Instagram / @martamarchena3
    Alice Campello is dating striker Alvaro MorataCredit: Instagram / @alicecampello
    While also in attendance were Marcos Llorente’s girlfriend Patricia Charlotte, Carlos Soler’s Marta Marchena and Sandra Garal, partner of Marco Asensio.
    Another member of the group was Sira Martinez – girlfriend of Ferran Torres and daughter of manager Luis Enrique.
    Tatel’s menu features some pricey items.
    A T-bone steak would have set the girls back around £220, with a rice and seafood dish costing £60.
    While even a cheesecake for dessert would have cost £16.
    Tatel may have felt like a home away from home for the girls, with the luxurious restaurant chain having a branch in Madrid – as well as others in Ibiza, Beverly Hills, Riyadh, Bahrain and Mexico City.
    Sira Martinez was recently able to enjoy some down time with boyfriend Torres – the Barcelona ace taking her out to the fair.
    Ferran Torres started dating Luis Enrique’s daughter Sira Martinez last yearCredit: Instagram / @siramartinezc
    Beatriz Espejel is dating Atletico star Koke and loves to travelCredit: Instagram / @beatrizespejel
    Daphne Canizares is with Dani CarvajalCredit: Instagram / @daphnecanizares More

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    ‘He was narrating like David Attenborough’ – ITV host Laura Woods reveals Roy Keane’s off-air Lionel Messi analysis

    LAURA WOODS has revealed Roy Keane narrated some Lionel Messi analysis “like David Attenborough” during a golden off-air moment.Host Woods, 35, and pundit Keane, 51, are both a part of ITV’s coverage of the World Cup in Qatar.
    Roy Keane is working as a pundit for ITV at the World CupCredit: Getty
    Laura Woods is one of ITV’s main presenters out in QatarCredit: Alamy
    Lionel Messi has been superb at his final World CupCredit: Getty
    And their broadcast caught a lot of attention when Keane and Graeme Souness became embroiled in a furious debate about the awarding of Argentina’s penalty in their loss to Saudi Arabia.
    Messi bagged his first goal of the tournament after dispatching the spot kick, but moments later in the studio the argument returned to the decision.
    And Keane was left raging with Souness following the Scot’s suggestion it was the correct call.
    The half-time disagreement made for excellent TV, with Woods and pundit Joe Cole letting the pair fight it out.
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    And Woods admits she loved every second of it.
    She told The Mail: “For a very long period, I sat there like a fan. I just watched and I couldn’t believe it, experiencing what everybody else at home is experiencing when they watch it.
    “You think: ‘What is happening? How amazing is this?’ I looked at Joe at one point and we were in disbelief. So I said: ‘And what about you, Joe?’
    “Joe’s always got an opinion but his voice is as quiet as I’ve ever heard him and he says sheepishly: ‘I thought it was a penalty…’ It was just brilliant!”
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    Woods, who described working her first World Cup as “magical”, also revealed details of Keane’s off-air analysis of Messi.
    She added: “But there’s other moments as well, that people at home don’t see. This is where privilege comes in.
    “I’d told Roy I’d never seen him [Messi] play in real life. Roy said: ‘Just watch Messi for a minute… It looks like he’s not interested and he’s just walking around when everybody else is running. But he knows where everyone is. He knows where the ball is and he reads the game like no one else reads it’.
    “As we were watching, the ball’s played through and Messi makes a run and scores.
    “It was offside, the one where his shoulder was just slightly offside, but the kind of poetry of it, where Roy Keane is almost… it was almost like he was narrating like David Attenborough.”
    Keane is a long-time admirer of Messi’s adversary Cristiano Ronaldo, but has not let that colour his love for the Argentine.
    Both Messi and Ronaldo are playing in their fifth and final World Cups.
    Argentina have safely booked their place in the quarter-finals where they will play Holland on Friday.
    Meanwhile, Portugal take on Switzerland in the last-16 on Tuesday evening, with a last-eight clash against Morocco or Spain waiting for them should they advance. More

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    Will the World Cup quarter-finals feature exclusively favourites or will Spain or Portugal bottle it?

    IN a World Cup which saw no team win all their group games for the first time ever, most fans would have anticipated at least one upset in the round of 16.So far, the first round of knockout fixtures have gone the way of the favourite.
    Netherlands, Argentina, France, England and Brazil all registered relatively comfortable victories while Croatia required a penalty shootout to edge out Japan.
    Today is the last day a true underdog can join the heavy hitters in the quarter-finals with Morocco and Switzerland set to take on Spain and Portugal respectively.
    One wonders if the success and swagger of the teams already in the last eight has increased the pressure on Fernando Santos and Luis Enrique’s sides?
    Morocco are not to be taken lightly, Luis…Credit: getty
    The lingering spectre of the upset has never drifted far in Qatar and it would be natural for fans of Portugal and Spain to now be worried it has it’s haunting eyes set on their team.
    Let’s not forget, Morocco topped Group F ahead of Croatia and Belgium.
    Walid Regragui only took charge of his first game as coach of the Atlas Lions as recently as September 21st but the late change of dugout personnel has not had any adverse impact on the North Africans.
    In fact, since the decision led to Hakim Ziyech’s return to the international stage, it has to be said that Regragui’s appointment gave Morocco a boost on the eve on the tournament – the Chelsea attacking midfielder has been brilliant in Qatar.
    Achraf Hakimi, Nayef Aguerd, Sofyan Amrabat and Romain Saiss have all performed superbly too, ensuring their side is awkward to play against.
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    Pedri, Gavi and company will have to be at their best to play through what is a compact, organised and hard-working Moroccan outfit.
    And in Ziyech, Sofiane Boufal and Youssef En-Nesyri they have a forward line that can hurt Spain on the break – La Roja’s back four is far from the most impenetrable at the tournament.
    Still, Enrique’s troops will start as favourites because of the talent in the squad and their high ceiling – when it clicks, they are arguably the most fluent international side in world football.
    Switzerland beat Portugal in their last meetingCredit: getty
    As for Portugal, they won’t be underestimating Switzerland in the slightest ahead of this evening’s contest.
    The last meeting between the two teams was only a few months ago in the Nations League where Haris Seferovic’s first-minute goal proved to the winner.
    Although it’s worth noting that Cristiano Ronaldo and co won the reverse fixture in Lisbon 4-0.
    Murat Yakin’s side finished top of their qualifying group ahead of Italy, a development that eventually contributed to the Euro 2020 winners’ failure to reach Qatar, and they were only one goal away from finishing above Brazil in Group G.
    And of course it was Switzerland who eliminated France in the round of 16 last year at the Euros – giant-killing is in their nature.
    But again, Portugal’s overall quality makes them favourites – Bruno Fernandes registered two goals and two assists in the group stage before he was rested against South Korea and his return to the starting line-up is a given.
    Brazil sent out a message to the other quarter-finalistsCredit: getty
    From a Dream Team World Cup perspective, today’s fixtures are the last ones in which there are clear favourites (although some would argue Brazil v Croatia is mismatch on current form) and so the temptation will be to use transfers to back Spain and/or Portugal for healthy returns – this tactic worked superbly last night as Tite’s men had their wicked way with Son Heung-min and pals.
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    Looking ahead, the quarter-finals will cause headaches as gaffers will likely have to back one team or another in a series of relatively even match-ups.
    Kylian Mbappe’s electricity or England’s consistent defence? Lionel Messi’s destiny or Louis van Gaal’s charisma? Decisions, decisions… More

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    Brazil go against tradition with full backs Danilo and Alex Sandro concentrating on defending over attacking in Qatar

    AS Cafu and Roberto Carlos sit up in the stands watching Brazil in the World Cup, they may well be reflecting that they do not have successors in the current team.Brazil pioneered the back four, unleashing it in a World Cup for the first time in 1958, when, with extra defensive cover, they did not concede a single goal until the semi final.
    Alex Sandro of Brazil has shown more defensive nous than attacking playCredit: Getty
    Brazil legends Roberto Carlos, Cafu and Ronaldo watch a different kind of Brazil team evolveCredit: Reuters
    Dropping an additional player into the heart of the defence had the effect of pushing the full backs out wider. They soon realised that they had a corridor of space in front of them that they could exploit.
    In that 1958 World Cup, Nilton Santos charged all the way up from left back to score a goal – something that was almost unthinkable at the time.
    The tradition was developed – who can forget Carlos Alberto bursting forward to seal the 1970 World Cup triumph with a blistering finish against Italy? The attacking full back became synonymous with Brazilian football.
    These players were more auxiliary wingers than proper defenders – and in that last World Cup win in 2002 Brazil ended up fielding three centre backs so that Cafu and Roberto Carlos could have maximum freedom to bomb forward.
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    But times have changed. One of the most striking developments in recent years has been Brazil’s developments of wide strikers. Centre forward has been a problem – one that Richarlison is currently solving.
    But they have more wide strikers than they know what to do with. This is reflected in the World Cup squad, where Antony and Gabriel Martinelli have to wait for their chance while Raphinha and Vinicius Junior are on the team sheet.
    And if the team have genuine wingers, there is little need for full backs to duplicate the function.
    The role of the full back, then, has changed. Coach Tite makes this clear. He says that he is not looking for Liverpool full backs.
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    Rather than the buccaneering wing play of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson, he wants Manchester City style players – full backs who may occasionally appear in the attacking line as an element of surprise, but whose basic role is to tuck in and make the extra man in midfield, hold the defensive line and also construct from deep.
    The switch in emphasis explains why it is not proving easy to fill the position. The first choices are the Juventus pair of Alex Sandro and Danilo – good players both, but hardly world beaters.
    And there is little strength in depth – hence the fact that 39-year-old Daniel Alves is still in the squad, and centre back Eder Militao is being improvised in the right back position.
    Brazil is not yet producing players who are tailor made for this new interpretation of the function.
    The role of full back is now much less glamorous and eye catching than it was in the days of Cafu, Roberto Carlos and countless others. But it is no less important.
    In the Qatar World Cup – and over the last few years – Brazil have shown a striking defensive solidity. That is despite playing a side with two wingers and a centre forward, plus Neymar and Lucas Paqueta.
    Defensive midfielder Casemiro deserves credit for helping out Brazil’s back fourCredit: Getty
    The emphasis of attack is on wingers like Vinicius JrCredit: Getty
    Holding midfielder Casemiro is receiving a lot of credit for keeping the opponents at bay. It is well deserved, but it must also be shared with the defensive unit behind him, where the more defensive positioning of the full backs, for example, is a great aid to the 38-year-old legs of Thiago Silva.
    Should Brazil go on to lift World Cup number six, it is unlikely that in decades to come Danilo and Alex Sandro will be watching matches from the FIFA VIP lounge.
    But Brazil’s Manchester City style full backs are still making an important contribution. More

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    France manager Deschamps faces not having contract renewed if he loses to England in World Cup as Zidane waits in wings

    FRANCE boss Didier Deschamps could leave his role as national team manager if they lose to England on Saturday.The 54-year-old led Les Bleus to their second World Cup four years ago – two decades after helping them win their first as captain.
    Didier Deschamps will be able to decide his own future if France beat EnglandCredit: Getty
    Zinedine Zidane recently claimed he is ‘very close’ to returning to managementCredit: Splash
    They then suffered disappointment at the Euros as Switzerland knocked them out on penalties in the last-16.
    But the world champions have dusted themselves off and looked thoroughly impressive in Qatar, making light work of Poland to set up a last-eight clash with Gareth Southgate’s men.
    Yet despite Deschamps’ achievements as head coach, the France Football Federation may still decide against handing him a new contract if they go out of the World Cup at the hands of England.
    His current deal expires at the end of the tournament.
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    And France Football’s president Noel Le Graet explicitly stated before the action got underway in Qatar that the decision about his future would only be his to make if he reached the semi-finals.
    Le Graet said: “We both agree that we will see each other right after the World Cup.
    “If we make it to the semi-finals, it’s your choice [Deschamps’]. If you feel motivated to continue, there won’t even be a discussion about it because you will have earned it.
    “If we are not in the last four, we will have to talk about it. In that case, I have the upper hand.”
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    If Deschamps was to leave after the World Cup, Zinedine Zidane is the overwhelming favourite to replace him.
    The ex-Real Madrid manager, who won three Champions Leagues in a row during his time at the Bernabeu, was a team-mate of Deschamps’ during their 1998 triumph.
    He has been out of work since May 2021 when his second stint as Los Blancos boss came to an end.
    But in October he told RMC Sport he was “very close” to returning to management.
    And the France role is thought to be the one he is holding out for – having previously turned down the chance to join Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United. More

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    German legend Oliver Bierhoff quits as sporting director after horror show at World Cup 2022

    GERMANY legend Oliver Bierhoff is the first managerial casualty of his nation’s embarrassing World Cup exit.The former striker agreed to resign as managing director of the country’s national football teams and academy.
    Oliver Bierhoff has quit as Germany’s managing directorCredit: EPA
    Germany have been eliminated at the group stage along with Costa RicaCredit: Getty
    It comes after Germany went out at the group stage in Qatar after managing just four points from their matches against Japan, Spain and Costa Rica, crashing out on goal difference.
    The German federation said Bierhoff agreed to prematurely end his contract that was due to run through the 2024 Euros.
    Germany is set to host that tournament but there are concerns about the team’s direction after a second successive World Cup exit at the group stage.
    The failure comes after their second-round exit at England’s hands at Euro 2020 last year.
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    Bierhoff had been working for the German FA since 2004, with the nation winning the World Cup in 2014 and the Conferedations Cup in 2017, both under his watch.
    They also reached the final of Euro 2008 and made it to three more semi-finals in major competitions in that time. However, after falling short in Qatar, Bierhoff decided to step aside.
    In a statement, he said: “I’ve told German FA president Bernd Neuendorf of my decision today.
    “I’m clearing the path for setting a new course.”
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    He added: “My work was founded upon the conviction of doing my best for the German FA and the national teams.
    “But that only makes the results of the men’s national team at the World Cups in Russia and Qatar more painful. That’s why I’m not leaving without the necessary self-criticism.
    “We didn’t manage to repeat previous successes and to give supporters reason to cheer in the last four years.
    “Some decisions we had been convinced of turned out wrong. No one regrets that more than me. I take responsibility for that.”
    Germany fans struggle to take in their devasting exit in QatarCredit: AP More

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    Even if we’re sent packing by France, at least Southgate has stopped England being silly after two decades of farce

    THE best thing about this England team, this England manager, this FA set-up?They’re not silly any more.
    Gareth Southgate has overseen three successful campaigns at major tournamentsCredit: Getty
    Kevin Keegan quit as England boss amid a gambling culture in the squadCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd
    Because it is easy to forget, after Gareth Southgate’s team coasted into a World Cup quarter-final, that before all this we endured almost two decades of farce.
    Two decades of slapstick, laughing-stock, Benny Hill-theme buffoonery — and none of it possible to comprehend happening under Southgate.
    England fans tend to focus on ‘oh-so-nears’, bad luck, broken metatarsals, red cards and shootout defeats.
    But it wasn’t really bad luck at all. It was a complete and utter shambles.
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    On the journey back from the Al Bayt Stadium, after England’s ruthless 3-0 victory over Senegal on Sunday, one largely forgotten image sprang to my mind.
    It was from South Africa in 2010 — an actual World Cup campaign, throughout which David Beckham stood by the England dugout, alongside manager Fabio Capello, being handsome and famous in a three-piece suit.
    Nobody even pretended that Beckham was a coach or anything. The FA admitted he didn’t have a role at all.
    Beckham was just ‘there’. In the actual dugout, at an actual World Cup.
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    What was that all about?
    Can you imagine Southgate countenancing anything so silly?
    That was a relatively trivial episode during a 20-year sewage show but, as a measure of how far removed from reality the England team were before Southgate, it takes some beating.
    Before that we’d had Glenn Hoddle employing Eileen Drewery, the faith healer who laid her hands on Ray Parlour, who asked her for a short back and sides.
    Then Hoddle being sacked for claiming disabled people were being punished for their sins in a former life.
    Sven-Goran Eriksson failed at multiple tournaments and his reign was tarnished by off-field anticsCredit: Reuters
    Steve McClaren was sacked after failing to qualify for Euro 2008Credit: AFP
    Imagine that happening under Southgate.
    Then Kevin Keegan quitting in the Wembley toilets after presiding over a clique-ridden squad with a toxic high-stakes gambling culture.
    Imagine that happening under Southgate.
    Then, a golden era of farce and scandal during the reign of Sven-Goran Eriksson.
    Rio Ferdinand missing a drug test, being banned for Euro 2004 and Gary Neville threatening a players’ strike in protest.
    The manager diddling Ulrika Jonsson, then diddling an FA secretary, Faria Alam, who was also diddling the FA chief executive Mark Palios, who resigned.
    Eriksson’s regime was so in thrall to the cult of Beckham, that when, during the 2002 World Cup, he was asked by England’s travel agent what time he wanted the team plane to depart, he replied: “You will have to ask David.”
    England’s Posh and Becks era culminated in the WAG circus in Baden-Baden in 2006, by which time Eriksson had been duped by a fake sheikh, who claimed he was going to buy Aston Villa and make the Swede his manager.
    Imagine any of that happening under Southgate.
    After Eriksson, the football got even worse as ‘wally with the brolly’ Steve McClaren failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
    David Beckham stood alongside Fabio Capello in the dugout at the calamitous 2010 World CupCredit: AFP
    Sam Allardyce resigned in disgrace after one game in charge of EnglandCredit: Getty
    Roy Hodgson oversaw a World Cup group stage exit and a knock-out defeat to IcelandCredit: Getty
    Having axed Beckham to prove how he wasn’t in thrall to the celebrity of his players, he brought back Beckham and seemed constantly in thrall to the celebrity of his players.
    Next it was Capello, who claimed he needed to know only 100 words of English and, as well as employing Beckham as a model/mascot in 2010, signed up for something called ‘The Capello Index’.
    Here, the actual England manager, at an actual World Cup, was to be paid extra dosh to publish online ratings, marking every player, including England’s, out of 100.
    This after Capello had axed captain John Terry for allegedly diddling the reserve left-back’s ex-girlfriend, only for Terry to lead an insurrection at the World Cup and for Capello to later reinstate him.
    But then Terry was found guilty by the FA of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, brother of Lions team-mate Rio, and Capello resigned in protest.
    Imagine that happening under Southgate.
    Roy Hodgson stepped in and decided to take the culprit Terry, rather than the victim’s brother Rio, to Euro 2012 because he couldn’t take both.
    And then Brazil in 2014, when FA chairman Greg Dyke performed a throat-slitting gesture as England were drawn in a group with Italy and Uruguay. And was seen reading a book entitled Death in Brazil after England died on their backsides, eliminated within five days.

    And at Euro 2016, with Neville raging against the press, players forbidden from even talking about an in- house darts tournament and Hodgson going on a boat trip rather than watching England’s next opponents . . . Iceland.
    So low was the reputation of England footballers back then, staff at their posh hotel decided to remove the chandeliers from their team room, out of genuine fear the players would swing from them.
    Imagine any of that happening under Southgate.
    Then after Sam Allardyce’s one-match reign was ended by a broadsheet sting, Southgate — and common sense — arrived.
    When he landed the ‘impossible job’, it was as if he said to himself, ‘What if we stopped acting like stark-raving lunatics all the time? Might we be any better at football?’.
    After axing Wayne Rooney following a drunken incident at the team hotel, Southgate imposed a calm, rational style of management — and England have enjoyed three successful tournaments in a row.
    Now, Southgate may be too cautious for your liking and England may be sent packing by France on Saturday.
    But at least his England are professional, serious, decent and intelligent, and nobody is laughing out loud at them.
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    Southgate simply doesn’t get anywhere near enough credit for his greatest achievement.
    He has stopped England being silly. More

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    Bukayo Saka used to dream of scoring in a World Cup now he’s one of England’s great threats for quarter-final vs France

    BUKAYO SAKA used to regularly score goals at the World Cup — before waking up.Now, the England winger, 21, is making his mark on the biggest stage, having already scored three times, and has his sights firmly set on France.
    Bukayo Saka hopes to take England one step closer to being on top of the world with victory over France in Saturday’s quarter-finalCredit: Rex
    Winger Saka has three goals in Qatar following this classy finish against Senegal and is two short of the tournament’s leading scorer, Kylian MbappeCredit: Getty
    Set to earn his 24th cap in Saturday’s quarter-final against the world champions, here is a player who really is living the dream.
    He said: “I always allow myself to dream. Having watched the tournament as well growing up, I have a lot of memories.
    “I remember South Africa 2010, the famous song (Shakira’s Waka-Waka) — it’s an amazing song.
    “Things like that stick with you forever and as a kid, I just woke up after a dream and thought ‘I want to do this for real. I want to score a goal in a World Cup’.
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    “Now, of course, we have to believe we can win the World Cup. Right now, our focus is on the next game, France.
    “I think it’s about finding the right balance because obviously it’s not just a normal game, it’s a World Cup quarter-final.
    “At the same time, you need to prepare and do the same things the way you normally do so you don’t overthink and get too nervous.
    “It has been a great experience so far, to achieve what I have and help my team with the goals I have scored is a really nice feeling.”
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    Saka, who scored the third in Sunday’s 3-0 last-16 win over Senegal, stressed he would be happy to take a penalty in a shootout — despite missing the decisive kick in the Euro 2020 final against Italy.
    He said: “Obviously, I have progressed and matured as a player and a person since that moment. I would not have stepped up the times I have stepped up for Arsenal with penalties if I was not confident.
    “So if the moment comes and if I am set to take it, I will be more than happy to.”
    Saka did not train yesterday, instead it was left to the substitutes from Sunday’s victory over Senegal to have a warm-down session.
    At his press conference at the Al Wakrah Sports Club, Saka was quizzed by a French journalist whether he would be the “Kylian Mbappe of this World Cup”.
    Smiling, he said: “First of all, thank you for the compliment but no, there is only one Kylian Mbappe. And at the same time, there is only one me.
    “I just want to be myself and help any team in the best way I can. There are a lot of young players in this tournament — I can name so many. Even in our team, there is another young player who is doing unbelievably well in Jude Bellingham.
    France’s PSG star Mbappe will again expect to be centre of attention against England but Saka singled out his own Arsenal team-mate William SalibaCredit: AFP
    “I’m just happy we are all doing well. The priority is to try and win the tournament rather than be the player or the young player of it.“We know the quality France have — we also know our own qualities.
    e have got to go into the game with confidence and do our best to win in the game.”
    Asked to name his favourite French player, unsurprisingly, he chose an Emirates team-mate.
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    Saka said: “I like William Saliba! They have so many players, I like Ousmane Dembele, I think he’s really good.
    “They have so many quality players and we will have to be ready for all of them in their own way.” More