And there could be more bad news for France right around the corner as they have faced England in three World Cup knock-out games before and lost each time.

But World Cup winner Thompson is adamant Lievremont’s men are still up for a fight, believing they always raise their game in the face of the Red Rose.

"The good thing is you know it's going to be a good, physical contest, especially in the scrum, no one takes a backward step,” said Thompson, England’s most capped hooker with 72 caps.

"I don't expect anything less, it's going to be pretty brutal.

"You can really go at them because you know they're going to come at you.

"It's just going to be really physical, isn't it? In the scrums, line-outs, mauls, they're going to be chucking themselves about and that's what we've got to do too.

"But what do you expect from a France-England match in the quarter-final of the World Cup?

"They've been a little bit up and down over the last few years and it's hard to play against them when they're like that.

"They're unpredictable, and when they play England, they always bring a good game, so that's what we're looking forward to on Saturday."