England begin Euro 2024 campaign with victory over Serbia
'He writes his own script' - Southgate on Bellingham plus more reaction
Victory puts England top of Group C after Denmark and Slovenia drew earlier on Saturday
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Serbia 0-1 England
Alan Shearer
Former England and Newcastle striker on BBC One
Other than the mistake from Trent Alexander-Arnold which led to the Aleksandar Mitrovic shot, England have looked really comfortable defensively.
Serbia 0-1 England
Matthew Upson
Former England defender on BBC Radio 5 Live
Serbia are struggling to get to grips with the Kyle Walker and Bukayo Saka combination.
Strahinja Pavlovic and Filip Kostic are struggling to understand which position to take up.
Image source, Getty ImagesSerbia 0-1 England
Oh. My. Word.
A cross into the England box looks certain to land on a Serbian head but Marc Guehi somehow makes a headed clearance.
That was a really confident piece of defending by the young centre-back who is appearing at his first major tournament.
Serbia 0-1 England
Matthew Upson
Former England defender on BBC Radio 5 Live
That is the steam train that Kyle Walker is when he gets on the overlap.
Walker originally saw the angle to score the goal, but then it was too tight - the ball rolls agonisingly wide.
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J: We need a threat down the left. Foden looks a bit lost. Gordon on?
Nick: Foden really makes this line-up look unbalanced. Saka is keeping wide and stretching the Serbian defence, but Foden is never wide on the left. I’d love to see Gordon come on at half time to stretch the Serbian back line on both wings.
Serbia 0-1 England
Bukayo Saka look majestic. He's really causing Serbia's defence problems and the provider of England's goal whips in another dangerous cross into the box. It's cleared this time.
Serbia 0-1 England
Alan Shearer
Former England and Newcastle striker on BBC One
When Jordan Pickford has got the ball England are trying to draw Serbia onto them. Serbia have gone three versus three at the back and England are looking to exploit it by going long.
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As well as being the best player on the park by some distance, Bellingham is also by far the biggest proponent of old school housery. You live to see it.
Simon
Serbia 0-1 England
Jude Bellingham is here, there and everywhere!
Now he's won England another free-kick within scoring range.
Trent Alexander-Arnold wants to take it but he has competition from his team-mates who are also eager to be involved.
Serbia 0-1 England
The lines indicate players to have passed the ball four times or more. The thicker the line, the more passes.
You can see England are absolutely dominating Serbia on the ball.
Image source, Opta
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What age is too old to get a poster of Bellingham on my wall? Asking for a friend.
Paul
Serbia 0-1 England
Bellingham heads England to the lead
Sit back and enjoy!
Here's the moment Jude Bellingham headed England in front against Serbia.
Serbia 0-1 England
Jude Bellingham is fired up.
Earlier, he reacted in front of Filip Kostic and barged into the Serbia player.
Credit to Kostic for not reacting. Bellingham escaped without a booking too.
Serbia 0-1 England
Alan Shearer
Former England and Newcastle striker on BBC One
The run from Kyle Walker was fantastic, no one was going to keep up with him or catch him once he got going. You just hoped that someone would be there to get on the end of the pass across goal. Problem is not many could keep up with him.
Serbia 0-1 England
What a run by Kyle Walker. He's one of the veterans in this team but he turns up the speed dial to power into Serbia's box but no-one is able to get on the end of his final pass.
And what a lovely pass by Trent Alexander-Arnold to spark that attack.
Walker shoots across goal
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Rachel: England are looking alarmingly imperious!
Dan: Jude impact is Rooney circa 2004, let’s just hope he stays injury free and takes us all the way!
Arjun: Hey, Jude! What a finish.
Serbia 0-1 England
Matthew Upson
Former England defender on BBC Radio 5 Live
England get away with one there.
Trent Alexander-Arnold doesn't get the ball under control and Aleksander Mitrovic hits it first time blazing it wide.
Image source, Getty ImagesSerbia 0-1 England
Serbia look more than useful on the counter. They have another sniff at goal but Marc Guehi makes a crucial block.
Serbia 0-1 England
Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer in Gelsenkirchen
Jude Bellingham's connection with England's fans grows with every game why wouldn't it?
After being mobbed by his team-mates Bellingham did his now trademark celebration with his arms outstretched to the England supporters at one end before running to the centre circle to whip up the fans at the other.
England have a superstar on their hands, Make no mistake about it.
Serbia 0-1 England
Jude Bellingham already has a mural in Stourbridge town centre. How about a statue if England go all the way and win Euro 2024?
Highlights: England 1-0 Serbia
Jude Bellingham inspired England to the start they wanted at Euro 2024 with the winning goal and a stunning individual performance in the victory over Serbia in Gelsenkirchen.
Bellingham's dream season – which brought him a Champions League triumph at the end of his first campaign with Real Madrid – continued as he demonstrated exactly why he is regarded as England's new superstar.
The 20-year-old powered on to the end of Bukayo Saka's deflected cross with a magnificent header after 13 minutes as Gareth Southgate's side were rewarded for an impressive opening.
England, who started with Liverpool full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold in midfield, fell back into old habits after the break as they sat back, their reduced intensity allowing Serbia to apply pressure. Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made an important late save from Dusan Vlahovic.
Harry Kane came close to adding a second for England when he saw a header from substitute Jarrod Bowen's cross superbly touched on to the bar by Serbia keeper Predrag Rajkovic.
England will need to improve, but this was at least a result that will send them into their second Group C game against Denmark on Thursday in good heart.
'Jude is an unbelievable player' - Kane reacts to victory against Serbia
Bellingham's imperious display, mixing glorious natural talent with an air of quality and arrogance, was a graphic illustration of why he carries so much of England's hope for this next month on his young shoulders.
The former Birmingham and Borussia Dortmund player shows astonishing maturity for one so young, bolstered by a season in which he took Spain by storm – and England are the beneficiaries as they look to end a sequence of falling short at major tournaments.
He showed power and conviction to score that stunning header, while his composure on the ball even in the tightest situations was a powerful and potent weapon for Southgate's team.
Bellingham relishes the freedom the number 10 role gives him, offering him licence to exert influence all over the pitch as the fulcrum of this England side.
He departed late on to a standing ovation from the England fans who have made him their new idol, relishing the sight of him performing his trademark arms-outstretched celebration in front of supporters at one end after his goal before running to the centre circle to whip up England's followers at the other.
Bellingham was even seen smiling on the big screens as he sat relaxed in the dugout in the closing seconds after another high point in his stunning year.
England and Southgate will now hope for more from their talisman as the Euro 2024 campaign progresses in Germany.
'Sloppy' England have to work on mentality - Richards
Winning was exactly what manager Southgate wanted, but this was far from perfect as England made hard work of putting away a workmanlike but uninspiring Serbia.
The Euro 2020 runners-up looked on course to comfortably dispatch Serbia after getting that early lead but, as so often has been the case in the past, there was a drop-off after half-time that encouraged their opponents, Pickford coming to the rescue.
England had major positives in the performances of Arsenal's Bukayo Saka, who looked refreshed and particularly dangerous in the first half, while Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi did everything required as John Stones' new partner.
Southgate was insistent starting with three points was paramount in the group. The objective was achieved but not without leaving the manager issues to pore over before England play Denmark.
Alexander-Arnold showed how he can add an extra attacking dimension in midfield, but he also conceded possession in dangerous territory, particularly when Aleksandar Mitrovic shot narrowly wide in the first half.
England's left side of Kieran Trippier and Phil Foden did not function anywhere near expectation. Foden, a player who performed so superbly in Manchester City's Premier League title win, was an unusually peripheral figure.
For now, the win will satisfy Southgate, but there is plenty to work on.
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users.
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 |
| |
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 0 |
| |
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 | -4 | 0 |
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| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| |
| 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
| |
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -3 | 0 |
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| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| |
| 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| |
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
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| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
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| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| |
| 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
Manager: Dragan Stojkovic
Formation: 3 - 4 - 2 - 1
Manager: Gareth Southgate
Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
Manager: Dragan Stojkovic
Formation: 3 - 4 - 2 - 1
Manager: Gareth Southgate
Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
UEFA European Championship
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This will be England and Serbia’s first encounter since the latter re-emerged as an independent state in 2006. In fact, since the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, England have only faced Serbia and Montenegro once in 2003, winning 2-1 in an international friendly.
England are unbeaten in their last six matches against Serbia/Yugoslavia, winning each of their last four. Their last defeat was against Yugoslavia in the semi-finals of EURO 1968.
As an independent nation, Serbia have qualified for a UEFA EURO tournament for the first time. They competed as Yugoslavia and FR Yugoslavia in five editions previously, finishing as runners-up on two occasions in 1960 and 1968.
Serbia’s most recent UEFA EURO finals appearance was in 2000 as FR Yugoslavia, reaching the quarter-finals before losing 6-1 to the Netherlands. It remains the only time a nation has conceded six goals in a UEFA EURO match.
33% of Serbia’s goals in UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying were headers (5 out of 15), the highest ratio amongst any team that have reached the finals in Germany.
England are taking part in their 11th UEFA European Championship – no team has played as many games in the tournament without ever winning it (38 matches).
Penalty shoot-outs excluded, England have lost only one of their last 18 games at the European Championship (W10 D7) – it was against Iceland in the round of 16 of the 2016 edition (1-2).
England topped their UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying group with 20 points, six ahead of Italy in second place, winning six and drawing two games. It is the eighth consecutive major qualifying group they have finished in first place, since failing to qualify for EURO 2008 after coming third in that qualifying campaign.
No European player has scored more goals than England’s Harry Kane across the last three major international tournaments, 12 in total (6 at WC 2018, 4 at EURO 2020, 2 at WC 2022). The only other player to match that tally is France’s Kylian Mbappé.
Head-coach Gareth Southgate will be leading England at a fourth major tournament after World Cup 2018 (4th place), EURO 2020 (2nd) and World Cup 2022 (quarter-finalists). At Euro 1996, he was one of only three England players to play all 510 minutes alongside David Seaman and Tony Adams – he missed a penalty in the semi-final shoot-out against Germany.
Current head-coach Dragan Stojković has made the most appearances of any Serbian player at the UEFA EURO finals, playing seven times across the 1984 and 2000 tournaments for Yugoslavia, scoring once.
