The mighty squad of the England national team will officially kick off the “bring football home” campaign with a match against Serbia at 02:00 on the morning of June 17. This will be a warm-up match, setting the psychological momentum for the Three Lions throughout their journey in this summer’s tournament in Germany, as they are still showing unstable performance and facing great skepticism from the football community.
First half odds for the match between England and Serbia
The England national team comes to EURO 2024 with high expectations as the top contender for the championship title, but at the same time, they also face immense pressure after disappointing performances just before the tournament. Known for possessing a star-studded attacking lineup that every team dreams of, but the cohesion is something that coach Gareth Southgate has struggled to find a solution for over the years. There have been numerous occasions where the Three Lions appeared stagnant, lacking creativity in their attacks with stars like Harry Kane, Phil Foden, and Bellingham on the field. Most recently, England concluded their preparation phase with a humiliating 0-1 defeat against Iceland at Wembley. Looking at the bigger picture, the team from the land of the fog only managed to win once in their last 5 matches.
On the other hand, Serbia has somewhat regained confidence with a 3-0 victory over Sweden on June 8. Coach Dragan Stojkovic’s team went through a tough period struggling to qualify for EURO 2024 before having unsatisfactory results in friendly matches. However, this doesn’t mean that the Eagles won’t be able to create surprises against the Three Lions. In recent years, Serbia has favored a defensive counter-attacking style with a 3-center-back formation and players with transitional abilities like Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and captain Dusan Tadic. It’s worth noting that in the recent defeat of the England national team, their star-studded lineup struggled against a defensively proactive Iceland, and the only goal conceded came from a counter-attack. In their last 5 matches, the England national team only scored in the first half in one match. On the other hand, Serbia’s strategy might aim for a feasible draw. The first 45 minutes of the match may likely not see any goals. If they fail to breach the opponent’s defense, the Three Lions often earn a large number of corner kicks, which is also a betting option worth trusting. Prediction: Under goals, England to have more corner kicks in the first half
Full match odds for the clash between England and Serbia
With the scenario of a deadlock in the first half of the match, the second half will be the time when the difference in class and squad depth between England and Serbia is most clearly demonstrated. Not only with main players like Harry Kane, Foden, Saka, but coach Gareth Southgate also has a plethora of other top-class superstars such as Palmer, Gordon, Eze, Watkins, who can completely make a difference. The evidence is that out of the 7 goals scored by the England national team in their last 5 matches, only 1 goal appeared in the first half, and the remaining 6 goals were scored when the clock ticked into the next 45 minutes. Perhaps the white-shirted team is accustomed to probing and finding weaknesses from the opponent before deciding to unleash sharp attacks to settle the match. With the situation of the game for both sides, the second half of the match between England and Serbia is predicted to be very open. In fact, the Eagles also possess a formidable attack with top-class names like Vlahovic, Mitrovic, Milinkovic-Savic, and captain Dusan Tadic. Serbia has every reason to confidently counter-attack against England, and the second half will be the time for them to do so.
The England team has lost their number 1 center-back Harry Maguire due to injury, while the most reliable remaining player, John Stones, has not yet reached 100% fitness. It’s clear that players like Guehi or Lewis Dunk cannot guarantee peace of mind, and Coach Dragan Stojkovic and his team will surely study this weakness of the Three Lions very carefully to find a way to Jordan Pickford’s goal. The total goals for the whole match set by the bookmakers is 2.5, this is a good odds to place trust in the over bet when the match involves a team that plays defensively like the England team. In addition, another option that will bring a high chance of winning for the players is the both teams to score bet. The England team has only kept a clean sheet in 1 out of the last 5 matches, while Serbia’s number is 2. Prediction: Over goals, both teams to score
