Mbappe to return to France training as reason for missing previous session explained

The Paris Saint-Germain forward was absent from Les Bleus' full session on Tuesday, raising questions over his ability to play in Saturday's quarter-final.

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He was working in the recovery room instead, despite there being no news from the French camp suggesting the 23-year-old was injured.

However, Didier Deschamps' side will welcome his return just three days before they play their next match in Qatar.

As reported by Sky Sports, Mbappe is set to feature in France's closed training session on Wednesday evening.

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He 'underwent a recovery routine' on Tuesday whilst his international teammates partook in a light training session, but he is not expected to miss out this time round.

Speaking to the media in a press conference, his fellow Frenchman Ibrahima Konate dismissed any fears over his absence: "We haven't really spoken about it at all.

"He was just resting yesterday. He had a different kind of training session to do. There was nothing worrying about that. Nothing surprising either."

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Mbappe has been one of the standout performers at the World Cup so far, with his brace against Poland seeing him take the lead in the race for the Golden Boot with five goals.

Even though Olivier Giroud became France's all time top scorer during the same match, Mbappe is on course to claim the record for himself, with assistant coach Guy Stephan speaking incredibly highly of the superstar.

"I don't know how long his [Giroud's] record will stand," Stephan said.

"If we compare him to Thierry Henry it's the same number of caps which shows how well he's done.

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"Maybe Mbappe could break it. He's a very big player like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and is off the planet with his skills. He's very inventive. His amazing technical ability is shown every game which is important."

England and France last met in a major tournament back in the Euro 2012 group stages, with the two sides drawing 1-1.

There is a lot more at stake this time round though, with the reigning World Cup champions looking to utilise one of their key assets in Mbappe against Gareth Southgate's impressive Three Lions for a spot in the semi-finals.

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