'We need him to play a bad game on Saturday' - Simon Zebo
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Munster and Toulouse face off in the Champions Cup quarter-finals on Saturday when the pair meet at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
For both clubs, it will be the 19th time they have reached the last eight of European club rugby’s elite competition, a competition record.
Ahead of the clash, Munster back Simon Zebo sat down with RMC Sport where he spoke highly of Toulouse and Antoine Dupont in particular.
'I have great admiration for him [Dupont].' Zebo said when asked about France's Grand Slam-winning captain.
'I'm a fan of his way of playing. He's one of the best I've faced, and I can tell you I've played against a lot of good players. But I've never seen anyone like him.'
'He's strong as a back-rower, as quick as a winger, as skilful as Quade Cooper, he's everything… We need him to play a bad game on Saturday,' Zebo joked.
Toulouse are still in the running for a place in the Top 14 playoffs after their 23-16 win over La Rochelle last weekend and sit in sixth place overall with two rounds to go.
#TOP14 - J24
— TOP 14 Rugby (@top14rugby) May 1, 2022
Le @MHR_officiel conserve la tête du classement 👑 Le @CastresRugby monte sur le podium 🪜 embouteillage à l'entrée du top 6 🚪 Biarritz est officiellement relégué en @rugbyprod2 pic.twitter.com/9CUNXs95wk
When asked about Toulouse as a whole, Zebo offered reasoning as to why last season's Top 14 and Champions Cup winners have struggled somewhat this season.
'Maybe it's more difficult for them in the Top 14 this season. But all the other teams know how strong they have to be to beat Toulouse, and they all try to raise their level,' Zebo explained.
'We know that when Toulouse are at 100% they could beat the All Blacks. They could beat anyone. We can't stop them sometimes and we hope they will be at 85 or 90%.'
'We have huge respect for them but if we also play at our best level we can beat them.'
READ THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH RMC SPORT HERE
