Aston Villa and Poland defender Matty Cash has revealed just how difficult dealing with France superstar Kylian Mbappe is after he helped Les Blues knock Poland out of the World Cup, but has revealed how England can deal with him far better.
Cash, fielded at right back, was tasked with keeping Mbappe quiet, but the PSG man went on to score twice as he helped France to a 3-1 win over Poland in the round of 16 clash, setting up a tie with England in the quarter-finals.
“I spent the afternoon watching his clips and I knew it was going to be a tough test, but when he gets the ball, stops and moves, he’s the quickest thing I’ve ever seen,” said Cash.
KYLIAN MBAPPE IS A CHEAT CODE 🚀#BBCWorldCup #BBCFootball pic.twitter.com/cZl0HzbUTL
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) December 4, 2022
“I’m watching the videos while lying in bed! In real life he’s burning my legs, that’s the difference. I got into a couple of races with him, and I did alright. You look over your shoulder and he’s there.
“He’s obviously unbelievable and probably my toughest opponent by far. He’s probably in the top two, three players in the world at the minute”, the Villa man added.
“I didn’t know whether to drop off or go tight, and when I went tight he just spun in behind. I did everything I could, when it was one-on-one I thought I’d done OK against him, he didn’t really run me once.”
“They don’t need any tips”, he explained.
“They’ve got Kyle Walker who can play right-back and he’s just as quick as Mbappe! (Mbappe) is the quickest, [Raheem] Sterling’s up there as well. I said before tonight that Sterling was my toughest opponent when we faced Manchester City, he was brilliant.”
With Walker now back to full fitness, the Manchester City man may just be the decider between England making the semi-final and heading home.
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