Bellingham stars as England defeat Serbia

A Jude Bellingham header was enough for England to beat Serbia 1-0 in their Group C opener at the European Championship as they ground out a hard-fought victory.

England took the lead in the 13th minute when Bellingham burst into the six-yard box to power home a header from a deflected Bukayo Saka cross, finishing off a move that the 20-year-old maestro launched himself from deep in midfield.

Gareth Southgate’s side controlled possession but struggled to turn their domination into scoring opportunities against a Serbia side who defended deep and ended the first half with no goal attempts at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen.

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Serbia looked livelier in the second half albeit without creating clear-cut chances and goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic had to make a stunning reflex save that rattled the crossbar to keep out a Harry Kane close-range header in the 77th minute.