Henderson: It is all about last 16

Midfielder says focus is on ‘really, really tough’ Senegal England camp avoiding any talk of France quarter-final

England are preparing to face Senegal in the last 16 of the World Cup with two warning signs: the African champions are a tournament-hardened opposition and one, as Jordan Henderson pointed out, who are “used to winning”.

But there is also the old English disease of presumption to combat – talk has already shifted dangerously to a potential quarter-final against France.

That talk, of course, belongs to the fans, the chatter and hype back home, the media even, but is certainly not taking place within the England camp.

Gareth Southgate simply will not allow it. The manager has already hammered into his players the need to guard against complacency, or dropping their standards, and it was telling that Henderson was the one elected to speak ahead of tomorrow’s game.

“Honestly, I don’t want to sound boring, but I don’t care who we could get in the quarter-final,” the 32-year-old midfielder, who is a leader within this squad, said when asked about ensuring England did not get ahead of themselves.

“It’s all about Senegal. It’s all about the round of 16. Hopefully we are still here next week and hopefully we can talk about the next round. But until then, 100 per cent focused on Senegal.”

There might be only one more game so guard against getting the bunting out amid the Christmas fairy lights for what would be a monumental clash (probably) against world champions Kylian Mbappe and co next Saturday.

The last time England had a quarter-final against France to potentially look forward to was at Euro 2016 when they ran into Iceland and the Thunder Clap in Nice, resulting in the trauma of one of the most ignominious defeats in England’s 150-year history.

Oddly, England’s 1,040th international match will be their first against the Lions of Teranga, who finished runners-up to the Netherlands in Group A. They may be without the injured Sadio Mane and the suspended Idrissa Gueye, but England’s concern will be to break down their formidable base.

It has not been a great season at Chelsea for goalkeeper Edouard Mendy or captain Kalidou Koulibaly, but they have shone at this tournament. English supporters will also be aware of the attacking threat posed by Ismaila Sarr, who continues to light up the Championship with Watford.

“It always will be really, really tough, especially against a team who are African champions,” Henderson, who is expected to keep his place after playing well in the win over Wales, warned.

“Yes, we can see they are missing Sadio Mane. But they have got into the knockout stages without him and are feeling confident, feeling good and they are used to winning.”