Ally McCoist has named his combined England and France attack ahead of Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final.
Picking a trio from the country’s talented strikers is certainly not easy. But it turns out the talkSPORT co-host has a lot of admiration for one French player in particular… and it’s not superstar Kylian Mbappe.
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Two of England’s three attacks go unchecked
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And it’s not just Giroud and Mbappe who McCoist says deserve all the applause
Gareth Southgate’s decision to start Bukayo Saka against Senegal against England’s then top scorer Marcus Rashford – who scored three goals in Qatar – raised eyebrows.
But the Arsenal star ended up scoring his country’s third goal in their 3-0 win to equal Rashford’s tally, with fellow winger Phil Foden setting up goals for him and striker Harry Kane.
However, while McCoist likes the England midfield of Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham and Jordan Henderson, he hasn’t included all of the Three Lions’ attacking stars.
“I think England are better and a good distance in the middle of the park,” he told talkSPORT Breakfast.
“I thought Bellingham was absolutely outstanding.
“Up front I’ll probably put Mbappe and Dembele and Kane, I’m not kidding here.”
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McCoist chose Dembele over Foden
The Blues have a rejuvenated striker in former Gunners and Chelsea man Olivier Giroud, the 36-year-old AC Milan star breaking Thierry Henry’s goalscoring record for France in the competition.
Meanwhile, Kylian Mbappe has also moved up the rankings for his country and is currently the tournament’s top scorer with five goals.
But McCoist chose to leave out the two England stars in his combined attack, showing his admiration for Barcelona star Dembele instead.
When asked by co-host Laura Woods if he really preferred Dembele over four-time Premier League champion Foden, the Scot replied: “I just think he’s exceptional, really.”
But McCoist showed some love for the rest of the Three Lions squad, despite pushing two of them over his front three – and that includes picking Jordan Pickford over Tottenham captain Hugo Lloris.
“But I take the whole English midfield,” he said. “I’m taking the England keeper.”
England and France are set to face off in Qatar on Saturday at 7pm, which you can listen to live on talkSPORT.
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