England ‘leaked’ XI v France: Gareth Southgate to make major calls on Manchester City stars amid Kylian Mbappe threat

Phil Foden, Kyle Walker, and John Stones are set to start in an unchanged England starting XI vs France in the FIFA World Cup  quarter-finals.

Southgate has named a fairly settled side throughout the tournament, but speculation on how he will combat the huge threats posed by Kylian Mbappe and co in this clash mean he has some major selection dilemmas ahead of the game.

Southgate has shown a tendency in the past to use five at the back for matches against elite nations, and given England face the reigning world champions tonight there has been some doubt over which system the team would use.

So will Southgate opt to stick with his tried and tested starting side? Or will he shake up his formation and personnel for the Quarter-Final clash?

It seems the England boss is preparing to select the same starting XI that cruised past Senegal 3-0 in the quarter-final, meaning the team are expected to line-up with the 4-3-3 system that they have used in all four matches so far.

According to The Telegraph and Daily Mail, Gareth Southgate is set to name an unchanged England team for tonight’s World Cup quarter-final against France.

Therefore, the front three will also be unchanged from the Senegal game, with captain Kane hoping to add to his first goal of the tournament, with Phil Foden and live wire Bukayo Saka either side of him.

Kyle Walker, whose battle with Kylian Mbappe down France’s left could be key towards the outcome tonight, is expected to be joined by Harry Maguire, John Stones and Luke Shaw in defence.

Here is a ‘leaked’ England line-up based on various reports surrounding Southgate’s selection for the clash with France:

England (4-3-3): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Henderson, Rice, Bellingham; Foden. Kane, Saka.