L'Equipe labels 'slow' Harry Maguire a weak link ahead of quarter final

French newspaper L'Equipe has pointed to Harry Maguire as a potential weakness in England's back line ahead of their World Cup quarter final against Les Bleus, pointing to his 'slowness'.

Both France and England impressed in their first knockout round matches in Qatar, as Didier Dechamps' side breezed past Poland after a Kylian Mbappe brace led them to a 3-1 win, and the Three Lions surged past Senegal with three unanswered goals.

The two sides have not met at a World Cup since 1982, when England triumphed 3-1 in the group stage.

For L'Equipe, speed will be key in this year's meeting, and they pointed to Maguire as a potential liability, writing: 'The winner will not be the team that has the most possession, but the one that uses it with the most suddenness.

'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 selections.'

The England manager has stuck with a back four in the tournament so far, but may be swayed away from his system after a couple of nervy moments in the first half against Senegal.

Another flashpoint highlighted by the paper was the battle between France's star forward Mbappe and England's right back.

'The face-off between 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,' they said.

Gary Neville shared their sentiments while speaking on ITV's coverage of the game, saying there was 'no right back in world football' he would rather have playing against the exciting young forward.

L'Equipe reserved their highest praise for Jude Bellingham, who once again impressed against Senegal and played a big part in England's first two goals.

They said: '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 Bellingham, who has been a dominant box-to-box player in the tournament.'

The quarter final will be played in the Al Bayt Stadium on Saturday, December 10 at 7pm GMT.