France not dependent on Mbappe despite game-changing form, insists Rabiot

DOHA: Kylian Mbappe is France's "main weapon" but Adrien Rabiot insists Les Bleus are not dependent on the forward in their quest to defend their World Cup crown.

The Paris Saint-Germain star leads the goalscoring charts at Qatar 2022 with five to date, and bagged a brace as Didier Deschamps' side progressed to the quarter-finals with a 3-1 win over Poland.

That has set up France's toughest test of the tournament on paper in the shape of Euro 2020 finalists England, where the attacker will be looking to make a difference once again.

Despite having needed Mbappe to fire them forward on several occasions so far, Rabiot says he is not the only member of their squad who can help win games.

"There is no dependency," Rabiot stated. "He is our main weapon, but we also have other players who can make a difference in other ways.

"We count on him as on all the players in the group. Everyone needs to be good health to face England.

"Kylian is impressive, and from year to year, he evolves and becomes even better. I don't know where [his growth] will stop. We are lucky to have him in our team and not against us."

Mbappe enjoyed a star-making tournament at Russia 2018 four years ago and has only seen his reputation enhanced during the interim.

He missed team training on Tuesday, though France have reported there is no injury issue to be concerned, and he will be expected to feature against England on Saturday.