Kylian Mbappé is reaching speeds of 22 miles per hour at the World Cup. Can anyone stop him?

Ahead of its World Cup quarterfinal against France, England has a problem to solve. Namely, how to stop the tournament’s top scorer, Kylian Mbappé, from adding to his tally.

“Nineteen other teams in [France’s] Ligue 1 – and others in the Champions League – have been waiting for a solution,” French midfielder Youssouf Fofana told reporters this week when asked how to contain the Paris Saint-Germain star.

“The truth will come on the pitch. We have full confidence in Kylian.”

Mbappé has been on sensational form in Qatar, scoring five goals in four games – two more than any other player.

That included a brilliant double against Poland in the round of 16 – the first a booming strike into the top-left corner, then the second a curling effort into the opposite corner.

But the 23-year-old has showcased more than just clinical finishing at the World Cup, terrorizing opponents with his phenomenal speed and ability to get behind the defensive line.

According to FIFA, Mbappé hit a top speed of 35.3 kilometers per hour (about 22 miles per hour) against Poland – among the fastest speeds recorded at the tournament so far. His teammate, forward Ousmane Dembélé, clocked 35kph (21.7mph) in the same game.

More crucial to France’s attack, though, is how rapidly the likes of Mbappé and Dembélé can accelerate.

“In a field sport, acceleration is by far the key element,” sports scientist Simon Brundish told CNN Sport. “Top speed is an opportunity … How often do you get the chance to run at full speed for 30 meters in the first place on a football pitch? It’s not very common.

“It’s how you can go from zero to five meters fastest and zero to 10 meters fastest – that’s the thing that separates you.”

But England may have an answer to the pace of Mbappé. Kyle Walker has long been regarded as one of the fastest fullbacks in football, and the Manchester City star is expected to line up opposite the fleet-footed Frenchman on Saturday.

Indeed, former England striker Gary Lineker went as far as to suggest that Walker should have been rested against Senegal in the round of 16, protecting the defender from potentially picking up an injury ahead of facing Mbappé.

“He [Walker] is very gifted genetically and his speed is one of his biggest assets,” James Baldwin, head of physiotherapy at Manchester City, said in a recent interview with Therabody.

“To be able to maintain his speed and still be one of the fastest European players at 32 is phenomenal.”

One option for England manager Gareth Southgate would be to deploy five defenders against France, with Walker operating as a right-sided center-back. Otherwise, he could stick with the four-at-the-back formation which worked so effectively in the 3-0 win against Senegal.