Southgate: “France is a fantastic challenge”

Gareth Southgate, coach of England, said after eliminating Senegal (3-0), that facing France in the quarterfinals was “a fantastic challenge.”

“This is the biggest challenge we can have,” Southagte said at a press conference. “They are the champions and they are unbelievably good. The individual players are very good. It is a very difficult team to play against. It is a fantastic challenge.”

“The two quarterfinals that exist are historic and good rivalries, which have given good matches in the past,” added the English coach, also referring to Netherlands-Argentina.

Southgate praised Kylian Mbappé, one of his great threats in the quarterfinals. “He is a world-class player, who has given great moments in this tournament and in the past. But they also have Griezmann, Giroud, who we know very well. They have very young and very good players in the midfield. There are they’re a tremendous depth of talent.”

Sterling’s absence

The ‘Three Lions’ coach was asked about the absence of Raheem Sterling, who had to leave the squad after suffering an armed robbery at his London home, where his family were.

“I spoke to Raheem this morning and he is on his way home. He needs space,” he said. “We want to respect him and not go into too much detail. It’s not the ideal situation for the group before a big game, but it’s less important at a time like this for him.”