World

THE French media have targeted Harry Maguire and labelled him the weak link in England’s side.

But they picked on the wrong man – because the stats show the centre-back has been in exceptional form at the World Cup.

France’s victory over Poland followed by England beating Senegal secured the mouthwatering quarter-final showdown next Saturday .

And it did not take long for the press across the Channel to up the ante by trash-talking “slow” Maguire .

L’Equipe, who went with the headline ‘God save OUR king’, wrote: “Harry Maguire’s slowness could prove detrimental to the England rear guard, which Gareth Southgate could strengthen by abandoning his 4-3-3 for a 3-4-3, as he does every time he faces the best teams.

“The face-off between Kylian Mbappe and Kyle Walker , who has just returned from a long groin injury that kept him away from the field for almost two months, will be key to unlocking the match.

“The Three Lions have often struggled against midfielders as skilled with the ball as Adrien Rabiot or Antoine Griezmann, but this time they may have their say thanks to Jude Bellingham, who has been a dominant box-to-box player in the tournament.”

Fellow French newspaper Sud Ouest declared France are “ready to eat a lion” at the Al Bayt Stadium.

But the figures tell an altogether different story regarding Maguire, whose selection was originally questioned but immediately justified by the Manchester United man.

He has been dominant in England’s four matches , conceding one goal when he was feeling unwell, thanks to a superb partnership with John Stones.

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At the other end, he has proved to be a handful in the attacking box once again – hitting the bar and assisting Bukayo Saka against Iran.

And the facts and figures only reinforce the exceptional performances.

Of the 215 defenders to play at the World Cup this year, Maguire is comfortably among the very best – and ranks high in all the key areas.

He is in the top 20 per cent of the large pool for tackles won (three), interceptions (three) and top ten per cent with his 14 clearances, eight of which are headed.

Going forward, it is even more impressive.

No defender has had more touches in the opposition box than Maguire’s 11, while he is also in the top five for shots (four) and successful passes (276).

NEYMAR flew his personal barber 4,000 MILES from Paris to Qatar in order to get a pre-match trim.

The Brazilian is set to return to action tonight as Brazil take on South Korea in the World Cup round of 16.

Neymar , 30, has been missing since picking up an ankle injury in his side’s opening match against Serbia.

And evidently he wanted a fresh barnet for his big return.

The Paris Saint-Germain star beamed alongside his barber Nariko after getting his hair cut and dyed blond.

Neymar is well known to be a superstitious player, and he may hope that his haircut brings him good luck.

Last time he faced South Korea was in a friendly in Seoul back in June – during which he sported a similar blond barnet.

In that match he scored twice as his side ran out 5-1 winners.

Ahead of the game, Nariko wished his client good luck – writing on Instagram: “The brabo with a new look for the return, go with everything brother @neymarjr #ousadia May God bless you and our national team novo.”

Quizzed yesterday if Neymar would definitely be fit enough to play, boss Tite simply replied: “Yes.”

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He then added: “Neymar will train today in the afternoon and if he trains well he will play.”

At the last World Cup, Brazil’s No10 sported an eye-catching blond perm .

While he showed off a pink barnet while playing for PSG a couple of seasons ago.

ENGLAND and France will meet in a blockbuster World Cup quarter-final on Saturday evening.

The Three Lions breezed past Senegal 3-0 on Sunday , hours after Didier Deschamps’ world champions cruised to a 3-1 victory over Poland .

Now football fans across the globe are looking ahead to the potential tactical battles that will decide the match this weekend.

Perhaps the most talked about duel is the one between French talisman Kylian Mbappe and English right-back Kyle Walker .

Mbappe, 23, has already scored five goals in Qatar – two more than any other player – and his blistering pace is frightening oppositions up and down the land.

His brace against Poland sent shudders down the spines of every England supporter – despite Gareth Southgate ‘s men keeping three clean sheets since the 6-2 win over Iran.

But Manchester City man Walker, 32, may well be the best-placed defender in world football to deal with the Paris Saint-Germain superstar.

The former Tottenham man hit a top speed of 23.48mph during the 2019/20 Premier League season – the fastest in the competition’s history.

According to SpeedSDB , that is less than 0.1mph slower than Mbappe’s top speed – which is a touch more than 23.5mph.

What’s more, Walker has been dribbled past just THREE times in his last 24 England appearances – which works out as once every 686 minutes.

However, it is safe to say Mbappe will be his toughest England test to date.

The 2018 World Cup winner has completed 13 dribbles in Qatar – with only Germany’s Jamal Musiala managing more (19).

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And Mbappe has produced a successful dribble in 21 of the last 22 games for his country.

Walker and Mbappe have faced each other four times in the past – with two wins each.

They first got to know one another in a friendly between France and England in 2017 – which ended with Deschamps’ men claiming a 3-2 victory .

Walker then had to wait four years to face Mbappe once more, before he got the better of him in April 2021 as Man City beat PSG 2-1 in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final.

Mbappe played no part in the second leg, with their third meeting then coming in September last year as PSG earned a 2-0 win .

Two months later they battled in the Champions League yet again.

And City secured a 2-1 win – although Mbappe did manage to bag his first goal against Walker.

The England international is a seasoned operator at the highest level.

He has 72 caps to his name and has helped England keep clean sheets in both games he has started in Qatar against Wales and Senegal.

But Mbappe’s terrifying record of 33 goals in 63 games for France – and nine in 11 World Cup matches – makes him an an intimidating proposition.

Former England striker Gary Lineker even suggested resting Walker ahead of the win over Senegal in order to preserve him for a battle with Mbappe.

He said: “Kyle Walker should not be in England’s team to play Senegal.”

The World Cup Golden Boot winner then added: “England cannot afford for Walker to get injured because he’s probably just about the only full-back on the planet that can compete with Kylian Mbappe, and that is the French team.

“How would you take the risk, why would you take the risk of him getting injured?”

Fortunately for England, Walker did not get injured and is now set for an almighty tussle with Mbappe on Saturday .

A former Brazil and Chelsea star looks unrecognisable with a new hairstyle and trendy goatee beard.

But can you guess who it is?

This former Stamford Bridge favourite used to run the show from midfield each week.

Making an instant impact in London, he spent five-and-a-half years with Chelsea .

And he also won an impressive 52 caps for Brazil , featuring at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups .

He played in all seven games at their home tournament eight years ago – which they were knocked out of in the semi-finals after an astonishing 7-1 defeat to Germany .

Guessed who it is yet?

Yes, it is Blues icon and former Brazilian midfield ace Ramires .

He spent his time at Chelsea with a smooth, shaved head and no facial hair.

But Ramires revealed a new look ahead of the club’s FA Cup final defeat to Liverpool earlier this year .

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Ramires joined Chelsea from Benfica in 2010 for £18million, having just won a Portuguese league and cup double.

And he went on to score 34 goals in 251 games as a dynamic box-to-box midfielder.

He won a Premier League title, FA Cup, Champions League and Europa League during his Stamford Bridge spell.

But he was shown the door in January 2016 when he joined the Chinese Super League revolution with Jiangsu Suning for £25m .

Ramires played 71 times for the Far East side before returning to Brazil with Palmeiras.

Making 43 appearances, he won the 2020 Treble before departing soon after.

Ramires was then without a club and eventually retired.

ENGLAND defeated Senegal to reach a World Cup quarter-final against France.

But the win was overshadowed by the news that Raheem Sterling had left the Three Lions camp to return to the UK after an armed burglary at his home.

Why was Raheem Sterling NOT playing for England?

Raheem Sterling pulled out of England’s last-16 tie with Senegal after learning that his Surrey home was broken into on Saturday night.

Sterling was forced to fly back from the World Cup after burglars smashed into his home.

It has since emerged that his wife and children were at home during the time of the break in.

The FA had said before kick-off that Sterling was missing out to deal with a “family matter”.

The statement read: ” Raheem Sterling is not available for selection for the #ThreeLions tonight as he is dealing with a family matter .”

The shock announcement came just hours before the Three Lions were due to kick off against the African Cup of Nations champs.

Sterling had started both of England’s games against Iran and USA but was then benched for the 3-0 win over Wales.

The 27-year-old has scored 21 times in 80 caps in total.

England boss Gareth Southgate says Sterling intends to return for the France quarter-final on Saturday night, but football has rightly taken a backseat currently.

Southgate said: “I really don’t know, it’s a situation he needs time to deal with, I don’t want to put any pressure on him.”

“Sometimes football isn’t the most important thing and family should come first.”