England's World Cup exit overshadowed Kyle Walker masterclass against Kylian Mbappe
Kyle Walker promised he wasn't going to roll out the red carpet to Kylian Mbappe - and he was true to his word. The trouble was that France found an alternative route to storm the English castle.
Kyle Walker kept Kylian Mbappe quiet all game (Image: GETTY)
Olivier Giroud’s head, effective though it has been down the years, would never have been judged as lethal a weapon as Mbappe’s feet but there are many ways to break a nation’s hearts. It was brutal on England because they did the hard part. Or rather Walker did.
If Mbappe was the French bomb; Walker was the disposal expert charged with defusing his huge threat and he did so with an admirably steady hand. Handed the toughest assignment in football, the England right-back did a terrific job.
Mbappe had the odd bright moment - he was always going to - but against an opponent almost as quick as him he was unable to wreak the havoc he had done previously in the tournament. France defender Dayot Upamecano advised Walker to have an early night in preparation for his date with the world’s most dangerous striker. He must have been tucked up early.
Walker had played for an hour against Wales and for a full 90 minutes against Senegal but after two months out he still did not have much football under his belt. But Walker was relaxed enough in the tunnel to offer a wink to the little mascot whose hand he held as the sides walked out onto the pitch but France served immediate notice of their intentions when the game kicked off.
The ball was driven straight to Mbappe, cutting in off his wing, in a set play but Walker was straight on the money and beat him to it. If there were some nerves underneath the calm exterior then that was a decent settler.
Kyle Walker stood up to the toughest test in football (Image: GETTY)
When Mbappe dropped the shoulder again with his next involvement Jordan Henderson and Bukayo Saka were waiting for him. England’s plan was clearly to offer support to Walker whenever they could but he was still the Manchester City’s man’s primary responsibility.
Mbappe has matured from the raw teenager who tore up England in a Paris friendly five years ago. More composed, more aware, the subtlety of his work in and around the penalty area has been honed by playing with Lionel Messi and Neymar at PSG.
There was an example of it as he almost put Theo Hernandez in down the left in the 23rd minute but again Walker timed his block well. Ten minutes later when Jude Bellingham gave possession away to Mbappe the alarm bells went off piercingly but Walker was there to mop up.
Pace sure but smart reading of the play too. With no joy to be had from his one-on-one, Mbappe dropped back into midfield briefly which was a moral victory for Walker.
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A half-chance fell his way in the 39th minute but he skied the ball over the bar with his left foot shot. Walker even has his own moment on the ball just before the break with his driving run cut short illegally by Antoine Griezmann who was booked for his trouble.
The less appealing side of Mbappe revealed itself in the run-up to Harry Kane’s first penalty as he deliberately delayed the taking of it by going up to France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and giving him an unnecessary high five. It was the slowest Mbappe moved all night. In the flesh, Mbappe’s earth-scorching acceleration is truly a sight to behold. Explosive doesn’t begin to cover it.
When he finally engineered a straight sprint with Walker just before the hour, he beat the England full-back to the byline and put in a dangerous cross France could not convert.
It was a rare flash of the menace he threatened to deliver. But in the end, the world champions didn’t need it.
