Neither England nor Serbia has ever won the Henri Delaunay Trophy, and they'll also face tough competition from Denmark and Slovenia for the knockout stage spots. Serbia, once part of Yugoslavia and twice runners-up in 1960 and 1968, is making its first appearance in the Euros as an independent nation.
Under the guidance of head coach Dragan Stojkovic, one of Serbia's football legends, the team had a mixed qualifying campaign with four wins out of eight matches. Despite this, they secured a runners-up spot behind Hungary, earning a place in the tournament.
Serbia's qualifying journey saw them defeat Lithuania and Montenegro twice, draw with Bulgaria twice, and lose both matches against Hungary. This performance ended their 24-year absence from the Euros, dating back to Yugoslavia's quarter-final run in 2000.
Serbia boasts a formidable attacking lineup, including Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic, Ajax fan-favorite Dusan Tadic, and Al-Hilal duo Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Aleksandar Mitrovic. However, their recent form is less impressive, with only four wins in their last 11 games. But two of these victories came in recent friendlies against Cyprus and Sweden, giving them hope against an England side that has struggled recently.
England, still haunted by their Euro 2020 final loss to Italy, where Luke Shaw's early goal was undone in a penalty shootout, are led by Gareth Southgate. Despite some criticism of his tactics and a brief link to Manchester United, Southgate has steered England through an unbeaten qualifying campaign after a disappointing World Cup quarter-final exit in 2022.
England's six wins in qualifiers included two revenge victories over Italy, but their pre-tournament form has been shaky with just one win in their last five games. Even that win, a 3-0 match against Bosnia-Herzegovina, was lackluster until the final 30 minutes. A 1-0 loss to Iceland, echoing their Euro 2016 defeat, highlighted England's recent struggles.
Southgate experimented with different lineups in recent friendlies, and while England hasn't lost a group stage match since their Euro 2004 opener against France, there are still doubts about their readiness for Euro 2024.
INJURIES & SUSPENSION
Unlike some of their Euro 2024 competitors, Serbia emerged from the June warm-up period without any injuries. This means head coach Dragan Stojkovic has a full squad to choose from, especially in the attacking positions, which gives him the best kind of selection dilemma.Stojkovic has often preferred not to start both Dusan Vlahovic and Aleksandar Mitrovic together up front. He might stick with this approach, allowing the team's most-capped player, Dusan Tadic, with 108 appearances, to take a key role in the attacking third.
Nemanja Maksimovic, who was rested for the win against Sweden after a head injury against Austria, is expected to return to midfield. Meanwhile, Milos Veljkovic of Werder Bremen should rejoin the three-man defense in front of either Predrag Rajkovic or Vanja Milinkovic-Savic in goal.
For England, Gareth Southgate seems to have avoided a potential setback with key defender John Stones. Stones, who had an ankle knock from the loss to Iceland and was quarantined due to an illness scare, is back to normal training.
As a result, Southgate's only absentee for Sunday's opener should be Luke Shaw. Shaw, who is training fully again after a muscular issue, will not be risked just yet, so Kieran Trippier will continue to cover the left-back position.
Crucial attackers Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka are ready to go after their rest periods. Southgate is also expected to start Trent Alexander-Arnold in midfield following his impressive performance against Bosnia.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Serbia possible starting lineup:V. Milinkovic-Savic; Veljkovic, Milenkovic, Pavlovic; Zivkovic, Maksimovic, Lukic, Kostic; S. Milinkovic-Savic, Tadic; Mitrovic
England possible starting lineup:
Pickford; Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier; Alexander-Arnold, Rice; Saka, Bellingham, Foden; Kane
EXPERT PREDICTION
Serbia 2-3 England
Since a third of Serbia's qualifying goals came from headers—the highest ratio among all 24 teams at Euro 2024—and with England missing their aerial powerhouse Harry Maguire, it's likely that Jordan Pickford's goal will be threatened at least once at the Veltins-Arena.
Despite England's sluggish attacking performance against a defensive Iceland, Southgate can now field a near full-strength team. This should allow his squad to step up and secure three points right from the start.
