Matty Cash predicts winner in Kylian Mbappe & Kyle Walker matchup

Walker & Mbappe have met three times at club level
Walker & Mbappe have met three times at club level / John Berry/GettyImages
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Poland right-back Matty Cash has backed England counterpart Kyle Walker to be the man to stop Kylian Mbappe in the World Cup quarter-finals.

Mbappe scored two outstanding goals to help France beat Poland in the last 16 on Sunday, setting up a tie with Gareth Southgate's Three Lions.

Cash put up one hell of a fight to try and keep Mbappe quiet but was unable to prevent the PSG star from getting on the scoresheet. Speaking to the media post-match, he was asked about his matchup against Mbappe and whether he could pass on any words of wisdom to England.

“They don’t need any tips,” he said. “They’ve got Kyle Walker who can play right-back and he’s probably just as quick as Mbappe. He knows Mbappe is amazing but Kyle is England’s best right-back. So if anyone’s going to stop Mbappe, Kyle is the man to stop him.

“I said before that [Raheem] Sterling was my toughest opponent - when we faced Manchester City, he was brilliant. Sterling’s rapid, but Mbappe is electric.

"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.

“In real life he’s burning my legs - that’s the difference. It’s a massive difference. When he stands you up and moves he does it really well. He drops the shoulder, goes short then long. I got into a couple of races with him and I did all right. You look over your shoulder and he’s there.”


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Walker has faced Mbappe three times in his career at club level, prevailing twice with Manchester City to PSG's sole victory.

The right-back came off the bench during a 3-2 loss to Mbappe's France back in June 2017.