Former Leicester City assistant manager Michael Appleton says Harry Maguire can handle the pressure of a World Cup semifinal.

Appleton believes Maguire will be key to England's fortunes again against Croatia, in both penalty boxes.

"First and foremost he is a great character," Appleton told Sky Sports.

"He's a Yorkshire lad, very very down to earth and he has a calm head.

"There's the obvious attributes that he does have, his ability to come out of the back three or four and travel with the ball and bring it into the midfield area. But he brings more than that to the team - there's a coolness, a calmness."

“His attacking ability has come to light during the World Cup.

“I think it does come naturally to him. Certainly in the Premier League they know he's Leicester's best header of the ball so we do usually get the opposition picking him up from corners.

"But from a defensive point of view, he would say if you asked him honestly, the most important role he's got to play is making sure they (Croatia) don't score and that he deals with everything that comes into the box."