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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
David McDonnell

Olivier Giroud tells England exactly what they don't want to hear about Kylian Mbappe

Olivier Giroud has warned England that Kylian Mbappe can go to another level ahead of Saturday's World Cup showdown.

Giroud said it is "scary" how good France forward Mbappe is and hailed the 23-year-old as the best striker he has played with. Mbappe is leading the race for the Golden Boot in Qatar, with five goals to his name already, and will be looking to add to that tally against Gareth Southgate's side.

"He's amazing and still young, which is scary because he can still improve," Giroud said of the Paris Saint-Germain superstar. "Since the beginning of the competition, he's been crucial to us, very decisive and very competitive.

"I can say he is the best striker I have every played with, but I don't think we have sen the best of Kylian yet. I hope he will beat all of the records. I know my record will be broken by him. He is unbelievable."

Giroud overtook Thierry Henry as France's all-time leading scorer with his goal in the 3-1 last-16 win over Poland, in which Mbappe scored twice.

Former Arsenal and Chelsea striker Giroud, now at AC Milan, said he has spoken with France and Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, with both admitting they cannot lose to England for their own pride

Kylian Mbappe is still getting better, according to strike partner Olivier Giroud (Lionel Hahn/Getty Images)

"I know England well," said Giroud. "I was talking with Hugo regarding this game and we said, 'We don’t want to lose against England'. But there will be no over-confidence from us, don't worry.

"They have so many great players, lots of quality, lots of different options and I just hope it's going to go well for us. I played a lot of games against these guys, I know them well and they know me well. The game will come down to fine details."

France assistant boss Guy Stephan said of Mbappe: "He is a player who is out of this world. He is four years older so for sure he has grown in maturity, since winning the World Cup [in Russia in 2018]. He's gained experience and he has grown up on the pitch."

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