England never shifted past second (or maybe first) gear as the EURO 2024 favorites opened their tournament with a 1-0 victory over Serbia in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, on Sunday.
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Jude Bellingham scored the game’s only goal in the 13th minute, heading home after Bukayo Saka’s cross was deflected high into the night sky, for his fourth (but far from his last) goal in an England shirt. The 20-year-old Real Madrid superstar has won 30 caps and, based on the evidence of Sunday’s game, is already the focal point of Gareth Southgate’s side this summer.
England gave them every opportunity, Serbia just couldn’t capitalize… but others will
There were precious few other highlights and positives for England, though, as Serbia defended robustly and on the back foot in the first half before taking the game to England for large stretches of the second. To be clear, Serbia created very little in terms of scoring chances, but the threat of being turned over and countered was constant for England. This begs the question: How will they fare against likely knockout-round foes Belgium (round of 16) and/or France (quarterfinals) when they get the bit between their teeth?
The full-time stats paint a bleak picture.
- Shots: Serbia 6-5 England
- xG: 0.17-0.54
- Shots from inside the penalty are: 1-2
11 - There were just 11 shots between Serbia (6) and England (5) tonight, the lowest of any game at the EUROs on record (since 1980). Boring. pic.twitter.com/gztaYjqvuh
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) June 16, 2024
Declan Rice was typically reliable and solid while shielding behind Bellingham, but his defensive midfield partner, Trent Alexander-Arnold, was far from the standard required (both in possession and defensively) for England to make a deep run at EURO 2024. It wasn’t until Conor Gallagher replaced him after 70 minutes that England looked a bit structured and safe with the ball.
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Serbia vs England player ratings
Serbia vs England highlights, final score: 0-1
Goalscorers: Jude Bellingham (13')
GOAL - Jude Bellingham heads home to open the scoring - Serbia 0-1 England (13')
Right on cue, we have our first shot and our first goal. Bukayo Saka raced down the right side of the penalty area and tried to hook a cross into the six-yard box for Harry Kane, but it was deflected right off his foot and looped high toward the back post. Jude Bellingham read the flight of the ball all the way and thumped his header home to put England ahead.
JUDE BELLINGHAM FINDS THE BACK OF THE NET 🏴🙌
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 16, 2024
England takes a 1-0 lead over Serbia 👏 pic.twitter.com/eTVKJ1QBss
Harry Kane’s header saved onto the crossbar as England hold on late
While they’re in line for the three points, the overall performance — particularly in the second half — has been quite poor from England. 64 minutes after Bellingham scored his goal, England have (finally) taken another shot from inside 25 yards. Not long after coming off the bench, Jarrod Bowen floated a dangerous cross to Kane at the back post where he rose above his man and headed on frame, but right at Predrag Rajkovic, who pushed the ball onto the bar. Perhaps there would have been a foul called on Kane had it gone in.
What a save from Rajković to deny Kane 🧤🔥 pic.twitter.com/qG48hIskhv
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) June 16, 2024
Suddenly, it’s all Serbia to start the second half
Perhaps the teams switched kits at halftime, because the first 10 minutes of the second half have seen Serbia the much more aggressive side, pushing more numbers forward in possession and forcing the England defenders to defend while running back toward their own goal. A good test for England to weather the storm, as they’ll inevitably have to do again should they reach the latter stages of the knockout rounds.
Things are getting physical, Serbia targeting Jude Bellingham on every touch
Even before he scored the opening goal, it was clear that making Bellingham uncomfortable was a key focus for Serbia. It has continued after the goal as well (four fouls have been whistled already, plus a few more that were allowed to play on for advantage). Midfielder Nemanja Gudelj is the first player to be booked, for — you guessed it — a foul on Bellingham.
Aleksandar Mitrovic smashes Serbia’s first chance just wide
Trent Alexander-Arnold, who’s starting in midfield, was caught dwelling on the ball a bit too casually, and it nearly cost England an equalizer. Aleksandar Mitrovic was quick to pounce and rip a heavy shot from the edge of the penalty area in the 20th minute, but Jordan Pickford saw it wide of the post.
Comfortable, controlled start for England, but no end product (yet)
10 minutes gone, and we’re yet to have a shot from either side, though England have enjoyed 88 percent off possession and out-passed Serbia 128-16 thus far.
Serbia starting lineup
Rajkovic — Veljkovic, Milenkovic, Pavlovic — Gudelj, Zivkovic, Milinkovic-Savic, Lukic, Kostic — Vlahovic, Mitrovic
England starting lineup
Pickford — Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier — Rice, Alexander-Arnold, Bellingham — Saka, Foden, Kane
How to watch Serbia vs England, stream link and start time
Kick off: 3pm ET, Sunday (June 16)
Stadium: Arena AufSchalke, Gelsenkirchen
How to watch on TV in USA: Fox Sports
Serbia team news, focus
Serbia will be one of the more physically imposing sides at EURO 2024, with star strikers Aleksandar Mitrovic (91 caps, 58 goals) and Dusan Vlahovic (27 caps, 13 goals) leading the line for a side expected to rely heavily upon crosses into the box and set pieces (5 of 15 goals scored during qualifying came via headers). There are others with Premier League name recognition as well: Southampton’s former play-making ace Dusan Tadic (108 caps, 23 goals), current Fulham midfielder Sasa Lukic (46 caps) and Chelsea goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic (3 caps).
England team news, focus
England are narrow betting favorites, just ahead of France, and the Three Lions aren’t expected to face much trouble in Group C with Denmark and Slovenia still to come. It’s always a tricky proposition to enter a major tournament in “it’s a disappointment if they don’t reach the final, at minimum” territory, but that’s where England find themselves with Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka also rapidly emerging as three of the best attackers in the world. Not only is that trio, plus Kane, supremely talented, but all four players are highly versatile and capable of operating in all different areas of the field, making England even more difficult to defend when positions turn fluid. They should score plenty of goals, but they’ll probably give up a fair few, too, with some questions about the defense still unanswered on the eve of the tournament as Maguire is missing through injury, Shaw is still working his way back to fitness and England have looked shaky at the back in recent months.
Serbia vs England prediction
Serbia’s big boys up front will cause some problems, especially early, but England’s wide attackers will have a field day against the full backs at the other end. Serbia 0-2 England.