England's early goal was enough to survive a competitive match against Serbia on Sunday, ensuring one of the favorites to win Euro 2024 would begin the tournament on a winning note at Gelsenkirchen's Veltins-Arena, 1-0.
The Three Lions were off to a quick start in the 13th minute, when the man of the moment, Jude Bellingham, scored his first goal in a major international tournament. Kyle Walker combined with Bukayo Saka on the right flank and the latter then sent a well-placed cross into the box, allowing Bellingham to smash the ball into the back of the net via a header.
Though Serbia started slow, they worked their way into the match and eventually turned it into a fairly evenly contested matchup. Quality shots were few and far between for both sides, though -- Harry Kane's header in the 78th minute forced a big save out of Predrag Rajkovic, while Dusan Vlahovic's back-to-back strikes from distance a few minutes later were met skillfully by Jordan Pickford.
Another goal was not in the cards, though, and so England soar to the top of Group C after a first round of group stage matches.
Don't miss CBS Sports Golazo Network's Morning Footy, now in podcast form! Our crew brings you all the news, views, highlights and laughs you need to follow the Beautiful Game in every corner of the globe, every Monday-Friday all year long.
13' England find their breakthrough from who else but the man of the moment, Bellingham. Walker passes to Saka, who makes a run down the right and then sends a perfect cross to Bellingham's head. The Champions League winner doesn't miss from close range and the Three Lions have a deserved lead.
England survive Serbia's second half pressure to begin their Euro 2024 campaign with a win but even with the three points, there are plenty of questions about the Three Lions' credentials as one of the favorites to win the whole thing.
89' Serbia have not quit looking for a goal, forcing England's defense to remain alert in the dying moments of the match. The Three Lions are benefitting from the fact that Serbia cannot rely take advantage of their opportunities, though -- Milenkovic-Savic just sent a shot from distance curling away from the goal.
88' Southgate takes Bellingham off after a strong start to his first Euros, bringing on another promising youngster in Mainoo to close out this game -- and hopefully survive Serbia's growing pressure.
82' Vlahovic ever so casually smashes the ball from distance and looks close to scoring, but Pickford is up for the challenge with his first save of the game. Vlahovic forces another save out of the England 'keeper after a corner, taking a strike from the edge of the penalty area. Those are Serbia's first shots on target of the game -- and their first in the second half.
78' Bowen makes an immediate impact by playing a perfect ball to Kane's head, and the England captain sends the ball for goal. Goalkeeper Rajkovic is up for the challenge and makes a terrific save before the ball bounces off the crossbar and away from the goal. It's the first major contribution from Kane, who took his first shot in that moment and has just 16 touches to his name so far today.
76' Tadic is booked after kicking Foden's ankles, while Southgate makes another sub and puts on Bowen for Saka. The Arsenal player had a strong first half, including an assist to the game's only goal, but looked fatigued as the game wore on.
69' At long last, Southgate makes his first sub -- Gallagher for Alexander-Arnold. The Liverpool player took the lone shot of the second half so far but playing in an unfamiliar midfield position, it's worth asking if that's going to be his position for England moving forward. As for Gallagher, he'll be expected to change things up in midfield in his first minutes at a major international tournament -- he was an unused sub for England at the 2022 World Cup.
67' Walker and Alexander-Arnold combine to force England's first corner of the game, but despite a couple of attempts, they cannot get the shot off. Bellingham, though, does impressively outmaneuver Ilic to attempt a cross but that, too, lands nowhere. Yeah
61' Serbia go for goal again but Guehi keeps England out of trouble, even if Mladenovic unsuccessfully tries to convince the referee the England defender got a hand on the ball. Serbia now change things up with two subs -- Tadic and Jovic come on for Mitrovic and Lukic.
56' Now it's England's turn to ramp up their offensive efforts, most notably through a shot from Alexander-Arnold that's well-taken but ultimately blocked. Bellingham tries to follow that up with an opportunity of his own but he falls in the box and the play fizzles out.
52' Serbia have picked up from where they left off in the first half and arguably look even more likely to score a goal than they did before the break. Their attack is succeeding in keeping the pressure on a somewhat shaky England back line and the likes of Mitrovic and Mladenovic had great scoring opportunities, but shockingly neither actually even attempted the shot.
Serbia make another change to start the second half -- Ilic comes on for Gudelj, who picked up a yellow card in the first half.
A match that started on a tepid note slowly became cautiously exciting as the half went on. A Bellingham goal might be inevitable but England have yet to put this game away despite dominating possession, allowing Serbia to claw their way back into this one. Serbia may not have a shot on target yet but they are quietly testing England's back line, while the Three Lions are finding it difficult to pad the scoreline. It leaves this game hanging in the balance at halftime, and could set up for a fascinating second half.
43' Kostic picks up an injury and cannot continue, so he comes off for Mladenovic and glumly walks off the pitch, likely to be assessed for the severity of the injury.
36' Shots may be few and far between in this game, but it's a livelier game than it once was as both teams make some promising developments in front of goal. This time, it's England who look like they're in a strong position to score when Saka dashes down the right side and plays a well-placed cross into the box. There isn't a teammate close enough to the ball, though, so the ball rolls out of bounds.
26' After a pretty slow start, Serbia find their footing in this match and try to pounce on a couple of England turnovers in midfield, but never get as close to goal as Mitrovic did a few minutes earlier. Amidst all that, Bellingham and Kostic get riled up, with Bellingham pushing Kostic and both exchanging words, but the moment fizzles quickly. Shortly after, England have a decent chance to go up 2-0 but Walker's cross rolls just wide of the net as a couple of teammates miss their chance to score despite making decent runs.
21' Walker gives the ball away and Mitrovic nearly catches the England defense sleeping, but his shot flies just wide of the post and saves England some real hand-wringing in the process.
10' There are no shots to speak of so far, but that's to be expected since Serbia play with nearly their entire team behind the ball every time England go for goal, which is a constant so far. We'll see what England can do to break them down -- set pieces could help, but not much comes from Trippier's freekick from 35 yards.
The national anthems have been sung, the good luck messages from tennis star Novak Djokovic and endurance athlete (and self-proclaimed Hardest Geezer) Russ Cook have been played at the Veltins-Arena and now it's finally time for the actual game.
Almost eight years after replacing the scandal-ridden Sam Allardyce as the manager, Gareth Southgate has steadied the ship and then some for an England team that developed a reputation for internal chaos. He got the best out of a talented young group of players and took them to the 2018 World Cup semifinals and the final of Euro 2020, but one thing eludes him -- an actual major trophy. Southgate is fully aware of the asterisk on his nearly decade-long spell in charge of the Three Lions, and was brutally honest in a recent interview with German publication Bild.
Juventus forward Vlahovic is the big standout in Serbia's lineup in the team's Euro debut since gaining independence. Here's a look at Serbia's lineup.
Serbia starting XI: Rajkovic, Valjkovic, Milenkovic, Pavlovic, Zivkovic, Lukic, Gudelj, Kostic, S. Milenkovic-Savic, Mitrovic, Vlahovic
Substitutes: Stojic, Maksimovic, Jovic, Tadic, Petrovic, Babic, Mijailovic, Ilic, Ratkov, Samardzic, Gacinovic, V. Milenkovic-Savic, Spajic, Mladenovic, Birmancevic
Southgate selects his most high-profile players for their Euro opener, including Kane and Bellingham leading the attack. Here's a look at the Three Lions' lineup.
England starting XI: Pickford, Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier, Alexander-Arnold, Rice, Saka, Bellingham, Kane
Substitutes: Shaw, Ramsdale, Konsa, Dunk, Gallagher, Toney, Gordon, Watkins, Bowen, Eze, Gomez, Henderson, Palmer, Wharton, Mainoo
In the headlining act of today's action at the Euros, England take on Serbia as the Three Lions aim to start their campaign on a winning note. Today's favorites are also the oddsmakers' choice to win the whole thing for the first time ever, and so a dominant performance against an uneven Serbia team is the expectation. Stick around as the countdown to the big game begins and then for updates post-kickoff.
