England's forgotten XI last time vs France with Man Utd flops and retired star

England will be facing familiar opponents when they take on France in the World Cup quarter finals in Qatar on Saturday.

The Three Lions have been preparing all week to deal with Kylian Mbappe, while many will have played with and against the likes of Olivier Giroud, Hugo Lloris and Raphael Varane many times before. England will be bidding to overturn history at the Al Bayt Stadium, with a record of just one win from their past eight meetings with Les Bleus hanging over them.

They haven't faced the French for over five years, with the last meeting ending in a 3-2 win for Didier Deschamps' side at the Stade de France. A France side containing five of the potential starters this weekend triumphed in the friendly, despite playing almost all of the second half with 10 men after Varane was sent off.

Goals from Samuel Umtiti, Djibril Sidibe and Ousmane Dembele were enough for France, who conceded twice to Harry Kane. England's team from that game, played on June 13, 2017, contains four players who remain key to Southgate's plans - but it has a distinctly different feel to it.

Here Mirror Football takes you through the team from that day.

Tom Heaton

Southgate was eager to experiment during this match and therefore used the friendly as an opportunity to take a look at Heaton in goal. Back then, the goalkeeper was playing for Burnley and was 31 years old.

He played the first half and conceded two goals - both from rebounds - before Stoke City's Jack Butland took over. That was one of just three England caps he won as his career subsided. Heaton left Burnley for Aston Villa in 2019 and then moved onto Manchester United, where he remains as a back-up goalkeeper. The 36-year-old has played just one game since joining in July 2021.

Phil Jones

Jones is still only 30 years old, yet this game comes towards the back end of his international career. Back in 2017, he was still a regular for Manchester United and a fixture in England squads.

He made the squad for the 2018 World Cup, and played twice in Russia, but has not featured since. Jones has made just 13 club appearances for United since the 2018/19 season, with injuries ravaging his career.

John Stones

Stones was just 23 years old and fresh off a first season at Manchester City following his £47.5million move from Everton. He struggled against the pace of Mbappe and Dembele that night, but has now developed into the player everyone thought he would be back then.

The City defender has established a rock-solid partnership with Harry Maguire and has 63 England caps.

Gary Cahill

Cahill earned 61 caps for England between 2010 and 2018 and was enjoying the height of his career with Chelsea in 2017. He left Chelsea for Crystal Palace in 2019 and stayed with the Eagles for two years before spending the 2021/22 season with Bournemouth in the Championship.

The centre-back announced his retirement in November, aged 36, after being released by the Cherries in the summer. "I did have options. I could have played in the Premier League with one side and I had a couple of options in the Championship which is flattering to still get the offers," he told Sky Sports.

Kieran Trippier

Trippier is now an England regular, with his performances for Atletico Madrid and now Newcastle marking him out as an international-quality right-back. The 3-2 defeat by France in the summer of 2017 was his international debut and where it all started.

He now has 40 caps and a goal in a World Cup semi-final, after netting a free-kick against Croatia in 2018.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Before the days of Declan Rice, Kalvin Phillips and Jude Bellingham, Southgate considered his options in central midfield to be scarce. Against France he gave Oxlade-Chamberlain a chance to impress.

Oxlade-Chamberlain was still an Arsenal player at the time, but was soon to complete a £35m move to Liverpool. Injuries have limited his impact for the Reds and his international career never took off either, with the last of his 35 caps coming in 2019 after he missed out on the 2018 World Cup due to injury.

Eric Dier

Dier is still involved with England, but as a central defender, rather than midfield, where he played against France in 2017. He went on to captain England in November of that year and memorably scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out against Colombia at the 2018 World Cup.

Yet he went 18 months without a call-up until September 2022, before making the squad for Qatar. The 28-year-old is yet to start in the tournament, but has been used off the bench against Iran and Senegal.

Ryan Bertrand

Playing as a left wing-back, Bertrand assisted Kane's first goal against France that day. Back in 2017 he was in the England team on the back of strong performances for Southampton, but the last of his 19 caps came that year.

Bertrand left the Saints on a free transfer in July 2021 for Leicester and has rarely been seen since, with just 11 appearances coming since for the Foxes. The 33-year-old will be out of contract in June 2023.

Raheem Sterling

A cast-iron England stalwart. Sterling has 81 caps and 20 goals for England and, alongside Kane, has been one of Southgate's most trusted players. The 28-year-old forward has moved from Man City to Chelsea since the last meeting with France, but little else has changed.

He will be back involved with England for the France game on Saturday, after flying back to Qatar following a robbery at his house.

Dele Alli

Alli's career has been a tale of sad decline over the past few years. Back in 2017, he was on top of the world, having just completed a 2016/17 Premier League season in which he scored 18 goals and made seven assists for Tottenham.

He maintained his form for a few more years, but Mauricio Pochettino's departure as manager in 2019 saw a dramatic drop. He was sold to Everton in January and has since moved to Besiktas on loan.

Harry Kane

Kane scored his seventh and eighth goals for England against France in 2017. He is now onto 52 and is on the verge of becoming the Three Lions' all-time leading goalscorer, with Wayne Rooney 's tally of 53 in sight.

The Tottenham striker has gone from strength to strength over the past five years, maintaining a remarkable consistency for club and country. He has been England captain since the 2018 World Cup.

England XI vs France : Heaton; Jones, Stones, Cahill; Trippier, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Dier, Bertrand; Sterling, Alli, Kane.

Substitutes : Walker, Butland, Cresswell, Gibson, Smalling, Livermore, Defoe, Lallana, Rashford, Lingard, Forster, Hart

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