England's Kyle Walker set for Kylian Mbappe's World Cup battle - thanks to Theo Walcott
Perhaps the sight of jet skis flying over the deep blue gulf waters that lap the shore near the team hotel. Something has certainly inspired England full-back Kyle Walker to believe he can stop the fastest man in the World Cup. "You can't be a speedboat without a driver," he says of his upcoming duel with Frenchman Kylian Mbappe.
"You have to use a bit of common sense. You have to use your brain when needed. I can't get as close to him as I would with other players - that's just the nature of the game I remember playing Theo Walcott once and I was getting so close to him and then all of a sudden he gets behind you and that's the lesson you learned You have to make sure mistakes you commit are not costly.
"Whoever plays at right-back is going to get the better of you once, twice, three times a game, he's a great player. You have to make those chances as few as possible and inexpensive A defiant Walker added: "We respect that he's a good player and in good shape at the minute, but I'm not going to roll out the red carpet for him and tell him to go score.
“I represent my country in the quarter-finals of a World Cup. It's do or die really. If we lose, we go home. hope to win a World Cup for my country. I understand what I have to do and it's obviously to stop it.
"It's probably easier said than done, but I don't underestimate myself. I've played against him before and I've faced great players before when I played with the England, Manchester City and other clubs I've played for. I have to treat it like another game. I have to be very careful and give it the respect it deserves.
READ: England ace Walker sends warning to Mbappe ahead of World Cup draw with France
"But don't have too much respect. He also plays against England and we can cause them problems too. It will be a tough game, but no player is teaming up. As the oldest man in the England team Gareth Southgate can expect the 32-year-old to draw on all his previous experience to help silence a striker who has stormed the tournament with his five goals so far .
The good news is that at the same time, this age shows no signs of going to his legs. When told that so far in the competition FIFA had clocked him at 34.4km/h (21.4mph) - 0.2km/h faster than Marcus Rashford or the other young snappers had succeeded - his response was euphoric. "My message is that FIFA does not lie," he said.
The only problem is that Mbappe went even faster - leading at 35.3km/h in France's previous game against Poland. Unfortunately, that shortfall of 0.9 km/h equates to 25 cm - or almost a foot - every second. In other words, a wink and Mbappe is gone.
And yet, from those previous encounters, Mbappe described Walker as a player who made him 'suffer'. He said: "It's good to obviously hear from a good player that he had a tough match against me. But we don't play tennis, it's not a solo sport. It's a team game and I'm sure you know it takes a team to win a football game.
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Perhaps the sight of jet skis flying over the deep blue gulf waters that lap the shore near the team hotel. Something has certainly inspired England full-back Kyle Walker to believe he can stop the fastest man in the World Cup. "You can't be a speedboat without a driver," he says of his upcoming duel with Frenchman Kylian Mbappe.
"You have to use a bit of common sense. You have to use your brain when needed. I can't get as close to him as I would with other players - that's just the nature of the game I remember playing Theo Walcott once and I was getting so close to him and then all of a sudden he gets behind you and that's the lesson you learned You have to make sure mistakes you commit are not costly.
"Whoever plays at right-back is going to get the better of you once, twice, three times a game, he's a great player. You have to make those chances as few as possible and inexpensive A defiant Walker added: "We respect that he's a good player and in good shape at the minute, but I'm not going to roll out the red carpet for him and tell him to go score.
“I represent my country in the quarter-finals of a World Cup. It's do or die really. If we lose, we go home. hope to win a World Cup for my country. I understand what I have to do and it's obviously to stop it.
"It's probably easier said than done, but I don't underestimate myself. I've played against him before and I've faced great players before when I played with the England, Manchester City and other clubs I've played for. I have to treat it like another game. I have to be very careful and give it the respect it deserves.
READ: England ace Walker sends warning to Mbappe ahead of World Cup draw with France
"But don't have too much respect. He also plays against England and we can cause them problems too. It will be a tough game, but no player is teaming up. As the oldest man in the England team Gareth Southgate can expect the 32-year-old to draw on all his previous experience to help silence a striker who has stormed the tournament with his five goals so far .
The good news is that at the same time, this age shows no signs of going to his legs. When told that so far in the competition FIFA had clocked him at 34.4km/h (21.4mph) - 0.2km/h faster than Marcus Rashford or the other young snappers had succeeded - his response was euphoric. "My message is that FIFA does not lie," he said.
The only problem is that Mbappe went even faster - leading at 35.3km/h in France's previous game against Poland. Unfortunately, that shortfall of 0.9 km/h equates to 25 cm - or almost a foot - every second. In other words, a wink and Mbappe is gone.
And yet, from those previous encounters, Mbappe described Walker as a player who made him 'suffer'. He said: "It's good to obviously hear from a good player that he had a tough match against me. But we don't play tennis, it's not a solo sport. It's a team game and I'm sure you know it takes a team to win a football game.
DON'T MISS... Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias bet on England's Jack GrealishCOMMENT: Cristiano Ronaldo is a fallen star who refuses to accept reality
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