Serbia scouting report for England: Significant aerial threat but mobility issues

Optimism is in short supply in Serbia, where many supporters are struggling to get excited for Euro 2024 after a series of questionable performances in qualifying. Serbia squeezed through their group, just ahead of Montenegro, despite twice losing to Hungary.

But these low expectations could work in their favour, and there is certainly no doubt that manager Dragan Stojkovic has talent in his squad. In attack, especially, Serbia have players who can hurt England at any moment.

Telegraph Sport’s scouting report reveals the areas England will have to pay attention to on Sunday.

Significant aerial threat

In Aleksandar Mitrovic and Dusan Vlahovic, Serbia boast two of the most powerful and physically imposing centre-forwards in Europe. Mitrovic is his country’s record scorer, with 58 goals in 91 international games, while Juventus striker Vlahovic has a commendable 13 in 27. It is not certain that Vlahovic will start alongside Mitrovic, but he will expect to play some part in the game.

Serbia are particularly dangerous from crosses. They are a strong, physical team and during the qualifying campaign they had more headed shots than any other side. Opta figures show that 36 per cent of their qualifying goals were headers, compared to an average of 17 per cent for other teams.

Much of the creative burden is placed on Dusan Tadic, the former Southampton playmaker who now represents Fenerbahce. Tadic is the most capped player in Serbian history, with 108 appearances, and was statistically the most creative player in qualifying for Euro 2024.

“Serbia are probably one of the strongest teams in the tournament on offensive set-pieces,” says Serbian coach Aleksandar Jankovic, who most recently managed China and is working as a pundit for this tournament.

“Not only because they have a lot of tall, strong players who are good jumpers, but also because they have good deliveries from both sides. This can be a very interesting weapon for them.”

Mobility issues in open games

England will benefit from stretching the game as much as possible, as Serbia often struggle when their matches become end-to-end affairs. This was a particular issue during their World Cup campaign in 2022 when the matches became remarkably chaotic.

In Qatar, Serbia conceded three goals in back-to-back group matches against Cameroon and Switzerland. Against Cameroon, two of those goals were conceded within three minutes of each other, when Serbia were attempting to defend a lead. Against Switzerland they also blew a lead, this time conceding twice in four minutes.

“Serbia has no quick players and maybe this is one of their biggest problems,” says Jankovic. “The moment the game opens a bit, Serbia has problems in transitions. Those games played in Qatar revealed weaknesses in terms of control of the tempo in the game. We conceded goals from counter-attacks.”

In their eight qualifying matches for Euro 2024, Serbia kept only two clean sheets — against Lithuania (ranked 137th in the world) and Montenegro (ranked 70th). They usually play with a back three, and those three defenders are often exposed.

Low expectations, low pressure

Before the World Cup in Qatar, there was huge excitement within Serbia about the team’s prospects. They had qualified in spectacular fashion, finishing ahead of Portugal in their group, and there was a genuine belief that they could have a real impact on the tournament.

“A euphoria was created around the team,” Jankovic tells Telegraph Sport. “It was maybe too positive. The disappointment after the World Cup was huge, and the qualifying campaign was not so brilliant. There were expectations that Serbia would qualify easily, but it was not so easy.”

The consequence of these recent disappointing years is that few in Serbia truly expect their team to make it out of the group stages this summer. There is therefore significantly less pressure on the players, who may feel liberated. They were weighed down by expectations in Qatar, so might now feel more free to express themselves.

This is Serbia’s first European Championship as an independent nation but their core players are now experienced at major finals. The likes of Mitrovic, Tadic, Luka Jovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic were all involved at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. This experience, against a youthful England team, could prove crucial on Sunday.

“The most experienced players have already played in two big competitions, the World Cups,” says Jankovic. “The stress goes down when you get used to playing these games, so this can be a positive thing for Serbia.”