Poland’s Wojciech Szczesny claims he can be the difference in his nation’s clash with France

Kylian Mbappé, the player Qatar paid a fortune to keep in Paris, is pretty much all that this country’s leaders have left to brag about at their World Cup, in a footballing sense. That’s why an interview between him and Qatar’s ‘ambassador of the tournament’ David Beckham is still furiously promoted on state television here.

It’s called ‘The Stars Align’, a glossy, superficial production, much to like about this bizarre World Cup scene, though Mbappe offers a moment of insight after Beckham tells him about his 1998 sending off against Argentina with England. .

“People don’t know what it’s like to have this energy to play and give your best,” says the 23-year-old in his excellent English. “Sometimes you go and do these things because in the World Cup you have all the adrenaline.”

Kylian Mbappe is ready to lead France to World Cup glory but faces a tough test against Poland

Allowing the stage and the occasion to cloud his mind and judgment seems to be the only potential impediment to Mbappé making his mark in this tournament. If there was any suggestion that the contractual games he’s been playing with Paris Saint-Germain might have clouded his mind, the first two weeks of the World Cup have dispelled it.

Much of France seems subservient to the main task of feeding it. He has so far helped an assigned role in which he is excused from the mundane task of defending and L’Equipe noted yesterday that the French nation can take solace in this. “He runs less so he can stay calm and explode on the counter when his team gets the ball back,” the newspaper wrote.

Naturally, Mbappé is among the five fastest runners in this tournament, clocking 21.9mph during the 2-1 win over Denmark, when he scored twice. There have been three goals so far for a player England are on course to face in the quarter-final.

Antoine Griezmann said yesterday that Mbappé, who turns 24 two days after the final, “is not the same player” as in 2018, when he was part of the French team that won the World Cup. “He didn’t have the same personality then,” said the veteran striker. We see it much more in the group, in training. He speaks a lot. He brings his joie de vivre.

Mbappé has been brilliant throughout the World Cup so far scoring three goals in three games.

Griezmann is one of the underlings now, moving from his usual forward role to a right-sided midfield position behind Mbappe, Olivier Giroud and Ousmane Dembele. It has been “difficult” to work in this role with such little time, he said. “But now I am more in a role where I find the attackers. I am beginning to understand what he [Mbappe] wants. what he needs; his game.

Patrice Evra, whose opinion is always worth listening to, feels that Dembele and Griezmann have been France’s best and most threatening players so far. The destruction of full-backs by the Barcelona player confirms this appreciation.

These assets and the pleasant balance of the squad mean the absence of Karim Benzema, Lucas Hernandez, N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba has not been felt, although a hugely organized Poland will test what France has to offer. Today is Miners’ Day in Poland and the goal will be to dig and hope that Robert Lewandowski can offer something.

Patrice Evra affirms that Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele have been the stars of France

A penalty shootout would be deeply ominous for France, given that Wojciech Szczesny is arguably the goalkeeper of the group stage, with two penalty saves, including that of Lionel Messi. So all told, this occasion is not without its perils.

Szczesny did not deny that the defensive task will be difficult for a team that is in the round of 16 for the first time since 1986. “We will do everything possible to try to get through this job,” he said. ‘The key to stop Mbappé? Myself!’

The former Arsenal goalkeeper, now at Juventus, has always displayed a smart outlook and sense of humour. He recounted a joke with Messi yesterday during the VAR review before Argentina’s penalty in the group stage match that Poland lost 2-0. ‘I told him that I would bet 100 euros that he [the referee] I was not going to give So I lost that bet. However, I will not pay you! I think you have enough!

Wojciech Szczesny of Poland has launched a defiant rallying cry ahead of their clash with France

Szczesny put in some excellent performances for his national team during the group stage.

France coach Didier Deschamps acknowledged that there will have to be attacking imagination against such a robust team. They defend a lot and defend very well. They love it,’ he said. But Poland’s task is to feed Robert Lewandowski, who was isolated against Argentina.

The Barcelona striker is another whom Qatar considers one of their own, now that they have paid him so handsomely to appear in the national airline’s in-flight security video, where he pulls on the rope of an inflatable life jacket.

Lewandowski’s display against Argentina was sorely disappointing, leaving Poland’s colorful and talkative coach Czeslaw Michniewicz to reflect yesterday on how the team should do better for him. ‘We play difficult passes in easy situations. We didn’t create enough opportunities for Robert,’ Michniewicz said. “Forwards like that need to be close to the penalty area.”

Michniewicz last week compared the deal with Messi to trying to stop Italian Olympic skier Alberto Tomba on the slopes. His striker Arkadiusz Milik had an equally colorful description of what is required to stop Mbappe: “We need to play collectively as a group. We need cooperation, because individually nobody is able to stop him. He is so fast that it will be difficult to stop him without a motorcycle.

France boss Didier Deschamps has singled out Robert Lewandowski as Poland’s main threat

Poland captain Lewandowski will be key to their chances of success against France.