Football Bet of the Day: Three Lions can start Euro campaign with emphatic victory

With the European Championships in full swing, England will be hoping to join the party with a winning start when they take on Serbia in Gelsenkirchen.

An almost trouble-free qualifying campaign saw the Three Lions qualify for Germany top of Group C with six wins and two draws - with these ties coming against Ukraine and North Macedonia.

Serbia had a more challenging journey during the qualification stages for their first ever European Championship appearance as they finished second behind Hungary and three points ahead of third-placed Montenegro. Below you can find my Football Bet of the Day. 

Alongside France and Germany, England are one of the favourites to be crowned champions at Euro 2024 and, given the strength and depth of their attack, it is easy to see why.

Captain Harry Kane enters the tournament having scored 36 goals in his debut season for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, Manchester City’s Phil Foden was named Premier League Player of the Season after registering 27 goal contributions for the champions and Jude Bellingham lived up to his £115million transfer fee by being named the La Liga Player of the Season as Los Blancos lifted a league and continental cup double.

Only Spain, France and Portugal netted more goals in the qualification stages than England’s 22 and they could start the tournament in emphatic style on Sunday.

However, the Three Lions could still be made to work by Serbia in what is their first international meeting since the Eagles became an independent nation back in 2006.

Dragan Stojkovic also has some world-class talent at his disposal in Germany, with his two likely starters up front expected to be Juventus star Dusan Vlahovic and former Newcastle and Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic - who is Serbia’s all-time leading goalscorer with 58 goals from 91 appearances.

Mitrovic had a stellar qualifying campaign as he netted five goals in Group H - ranking him 11th in terms of goal contributions - while the 29-year-old also comes into Germany on the back of helping Al-Hilal to an unbeaten, title winning season in the Saudi Pro League, scoring 28 goals in as many games.

A 3-0 victory in Sweden last time out will have given the Eagles some belief heading into their first European Championship and, with the Three Lions missing Harry Maguire in the centre of defence, they will feel that Gareth Southgate’s back-line can be exploited.

However, Serbia have struggled when facing top-tier opposition - with defeats to Belgium and Hungary (twice) since their group stage exit at the 2022 World Cup - and so a single goal may be the best they can hope for in Hamburg.

OFFER: Place an In-Play bet of £10 or more odds of 1/2+ on Poland v Netherlands or Slovenia v Denmark and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on Serbia v England.

Check out our other Euro 2024 Betting Tips here.