Gareth Southgate insisted that England’s imperfect start to its Euro 2024 campaign might turn out to be just what his squad needed.
Head coach Southgate was relieved to see his side survive a tense 1-0 victory against Serbia in Gelsenkirchen, with Jude Bellingham’s early header proving to be the difference between the teams.
And as favorites to win their nation’s first major tournament since 1966, Southgate thinks that still collecting three points to top Group C despite an occasionally shaky performance will benefit England in its overall quest to lift the trophy.
“They are a strong team,” Southgate told reporters. “We had to suffer a bit, which I think is really good for us. To defend the box the way we did was really good. (In the) second half we didn’t keep it as well as I would have liked, but to get the win was very important.
“I liked the fact we had to suffer without the ball because that is an area we have worked on a lot this week. I am confident we will get (more) goals. Playing against a back five it is not easy to create chances, and we did.”
“Suffer” was clearly the catchword of the day — Southgate used it liberally when addressing his players post-game, and the message had clearly gotten through.
Defender Marc Guehi, who performed strongly in his first appearance in a tournament for England, continued the theme.
“This was very, very important,” Guehi said. “If we are going to go far in this tournament, we are going to have to suffer, and it was a great test for us. It is a good learning curve for the team, and hopefully we can take it on to the next game.”
Perhaps more than any other nation, England has a fan base that is prone to jump into overexcited — and sometimes unrealistic — waves of expectation as a result of a single big performance.
At both of the past two World Cups, swashbuckling early showings raised the hype level to unsustainable levels. In 2018, there was a thumping of Panama in Game 2. Then, in 2022, a 6-2 win against Iran, that could be said to be Bellingham’s international coming out party, came in the opener.
This average performance, albeit a win, will perhaps send the message that this group is not invincible and still has plenty of work to do if it is to achieve its stated aims.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was solid in the center of midfield but not altogether convincing, while Guehi’s effort alongside John Stones won’t completely appease thoughts that England’s defense is among its weaker elements.
The result was what mattered and set the stage for what promises to be the toughest matchup in the group, facing Denmark in Frankfurt on Thursday.
The Danes gave Southgate’s England a close run in the Euros semifinal three years ago, eventually losing 2-1 in extra-time at Wembley after Harry Kane’s penalty was saved by Kasper Schmeichel but Kane scored from the rebound.
With Southgate’s backline already short-staffed with Luke Shaw in the squad but continuing to recover from a long-held injury, there were concerns when Kieran Trippier received treatment late in the game. But the mishap was later revealed to be nothing more than a cramp.
Denmark will be motivated to get its own tournament rolling after being frustrated in a 1-1 draw against Slovenia earlier on Sunday, when Christian Eriksen’s strike was balanced out by Erik Janza’s effort.
For England, much of the midfield workload, plus its creative effort, will again be expected from Bellingham, who is remarkably playing in his third international tournament despite not turning 21 until the first day of the knockout stage.
“He seems to write his own scripts,” Southgate said of Bellingham, who was awarded player of the match by UEFA. “He welcomes the attention and he keep delivering. He had some outstanding moments in the game and equally our two wide players (Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka) and central midfielder players (Alexander-Arnold) did well working around him.”
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