Manchester City and England defender Kyle Walker has named former Liverpool ace Sadio Mane as the toughest opponent he has faced during his career.
Walker is currently in Qatar as part of England's 26-man squad for the World Cup finals and has faced a surplus of questions about his defending ability as he bids to thwart France superstar Kylian Mbappe during Saturday's quarter-final meeting.
The two nations will go head-to-head in Doha in two days' time for a place in the semi-final, with the winner facing either Morocco or Portugal next week.
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Mbappe has been in fine form during the tournament so far and is currently the top goal-scorer with five goals in just four appearances, including a stunning brace against Poland in the round of 16. The 23-year-old Frenchman is regarded by many as the best player on the planet at the moment.
But ahead of the highly-anticipated dual between the duo, Walker has refused to solely focus on the Paris Saint-Germain superstar in Didier Deschamps' group of world champions.
“I think the game’s not England vs Mbappe, it’s England vs France,” said Walker on Wednesday at a press conference. “We respect that he is a good player in good form, but I am not going to roll out a red carpet for him and tell him to go and score.
“I’m representing my country at the quarter-final in a World Cup, it’s do or die really. If we lose, we go home. He’s not going to stand in my way of winning a World Cup for my country.
“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 added: "He’s a tool in their armoury that is very good, but there are other good players and we can’t underestimate them. [They have] players that have won big titles, won World Cups."
However, Walker has in fact revealed that it is the former Liverpool favourite Mane who has been the toughest test of his career to date.
“I would probably say Sadio Mane just because he never gives you a moment’s rest on the ball," said the right-back when quizzed about his most challenging opponent. "I’m not saying the other guys I mentioned don’t! But they probably don’t defend as much as Mane does and save their energy for when they are attacking.”
Mane ended his six-year stay on Merseyside during the summer as he joined Bayern Munich, in a deal that could eventually rise to over £35m. After being handed his Premier League berth by Ronald Koeman at Southampton, Mane would become one of Manchester City's most feared opponents as he found the net ten times over the course of 19 meetings.
Walker and Mane should have locked horns once again when Gareth Southgate's side faced Senegal in the round of 16. However, the forward was ruled out of the tournament just days before it commenced after suffering a serious leg injury while playing for Bayern Munich.
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