England manager Gareth Southgate believes that his side's strongly united front when coming up against France in the quarter-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup will serve them well in what is a huge clash.
The two countries go face-to-face on Saturday evening, with a place in the final four at stake, with both teams considered potential favourites to win the entire tournament, should they progress past this stage.
One thing Southgate believes his players can use to their advantage is their camaraderie as a group, describing the squad as "very close ... [with] a tremendous spirit and ... a lot of shared experiences together now."
The manager continued: "The older players make it a very comfortable space to come into. They let the younger players to settle in socially and be at ease, and that's why the young players are able to come in an express themselves. It's a real collective and that is the strength of what we have got."
One of the main battles which has been pointed out ahead of this game is that of Kyle Walker coming up against Kylian Mbappe, with the English full-back needing to be at the top of his game to stop the winger.
It was reported this week that Southgate and his staff had been devising a so-called 'Stop Mbappe' plan for the past couple of years, and while he would not be drawn on that concept, he did reveal part of his plan to deal with the 23-year-old.
"I think the same as every position on the field, everyone on the pitch has 10 individual battles and has to support their teammates. Obviously there is a direct responsibility on his opponent.
"You have to expect the same with our forwards. You've got to work the area of the pitch zones to make sure there is good coverage."
There was also a word on Jude Bellingham, who has been one of the stars of the competition this year, especially for the Three Lions, and his manager could not be full of more praise, describing him as "exceptional".
"We've got a lot of young players coming through our system. Jude Bellingham is obviously establishing himself in this tournament and has had a remarkable tournament."
The one thing which always seems to exude from Southgate is his respect towards others, and he made no exception to that, praising the upcoming opponents, and indeed their manager, Didier Deschamps, as well.
"France are a fantastic team and we are aware of all of their players and the quality of their whole squad. Didier [Deschamps] has created a team that is stronger than the individual, which maybe wasn't always the case and we have to be at our very best to win the game."
'England have no weaknesses'
The respect between the managers went both ways too, with Didier Deschamps speaking of his admiration for Southgate as a person and as a manager, whilst also recognising it may not be a view shared by all those in England.
"I very much like Gareth," the Frenchman said. "We have met and talked on a number of occasions. But if I understand correctly, not everyone appreciates him so much in his own country.
"That isn't because he wasn't a good footballer himself. He had a long, distinguished career and he is also a very good coach. He has enabled England to get some very good results over the years and I very much like him."
That respect is not just contained to Southgate himself either - Deschamps also spoke glowingly about the ability of the Three Lions to cause his side problems on Saturday night, saying, "it's not by chance they are facing us in the quarter-finals."
"England's team is very strong ... and scored lots of goals with quick counter-attacks," he remarked. "They also have many other qualities in terms of technical ability, capacity to score goals and being dangerous on set pieces.
In addition, when asked about what he would identify as England's weaknesses, the 54-year-old simply replied: "They don't have any. All teams have strengths, not all have many weaknesses, but slightly less strong points.
"England have seen us play four games. At the end of the day, you need to identify areas where you think you can attack them."
Moving onto his own team, Deschamps was cool, calm and collected when it came to discussing their preparation for this tie, reflecting a sense of underlying confidence which is undoubtedly befitting of the current World Champions.
"They [the squad] are calm, they are remaining very serene and that's true since the beginning of the tournament. You have top focus on each match and we're now in the quarter finals.
"There is no point being stressed and putting yourself under pressure. The objective is to get through to the semi-finals."
Deschamps also commented on the importance of his players remaining disciplined to ensure they do not pick up any suspensions, telling the media, "They know what to do. We need to say be careful, but you can't expect them to play with the handbrakes on.
"They are going to have to dig deep and give everything. I think playing with the handbrake on will be the worst thing we can do."
And finally, when faced with the prospect that his team may be too reliant on Kylian Mbappe?
"We have other players, but Kylian is Kylian and he can make the difference."