---

By Sam McGuire

---

Undeserved clean sheet for Spain 

On paper, Spain’s 3-0 win over Croatia was a statement. 

The beaten 2018 World Cup finalists were viewed as dark horses in this tournament and to see them swept aside by this Spain side was a surprise. The result put Luis de la Fuente’s men in a commanding position in Group B. But, sometimes, results don’t tell the whole story and this was one of these times. 

Spain may have romped to a 3-0 victory but actually finished the game with a lower Expected Goals total than their opponents. Croatia, with their penalty, carved out chances with an xG of 2.4. 

If La Roja continue to give up these kinds of opportunities, they are going to lose more games than they will win. The clean sheet they kept on Saturday papered over a lot of their defensive cracks. 

Big chances matter 

Italy, on the other hand, deserved their win over Albania. If anything, the 2-1 scoreline didn’t do justice to how dominant Luciano Spalletti’s men actually were. The reigning champions created five big chances, the most of any team in a single game in the tournament so far. 

They spurned four of them but still managed to come from behind on Saturday evening to pick up an important three points. 

If the Euro 2020 winners are in the mood on Thursday, they could cause Spain a lot of trouble. Especially if they are as poor defensively as they were against Croatia. Spalletti will be hoping Federico Chiesa and Lorenzo Pellegrino can be at their creative bests once against, the duo carved out three of the five big chances Italy had in their opening matchday win.

However, if they’re once again wasteful, they might not be as lucky this time around.

England’s attacking woes

England have one of the most talented squads at Euro 2024. 

Gareth Southgate has Phil Foden, Harry Kane, Ollie Watkins, Ivan Toney, Bukayo Saka, Jarrod Bowen, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon, Eberechi Eze and Cole Palmer at his disposal for the four attacking places within his starting XI. 

This is a squad that should have no trouble creating opportunities. Yet against Serbia, the Three Lions struggled. England were out-shot six to five in their group opener. They managed to carve out chances with an xG value of 0.5 and if it wasn’t for Bellingham crashing into the box to convert a deflected Saka cross, the breakthrough likely would never have arrived. 

Southgate’s team struggled to create anything and looked out of ideas. This is going to have to change if they are going to make a splash in this tournament.

Are Serbia too physical? 

Serbia huffed and puffed against England but weren’t able to find a way past Jordan Pickford despite their best efforts after the break. The probably deserved a point from the game, especially after the way they nullified the Three Lions. 

However, the loss on Sunday evening puts them in a dangerous position. They can’t afford another defeat, not if they want to give themselves a good chance of qualification, so a positive result against Slovenia is needed. 

If they are to give themselves a good chance of success, they might need to tweak their approach. Serbia, one of the tallest teams at the tournament, are a little too aggressive in their approach and committed 19 fouls against England. It is a total no other team can surpass on matchday one.

Their aggression allowed England to take the sting out of the game. They need to make sure Slovenia don’t get the same sort of chances to kill momentum. 

---

(Cover image from IMAGO)

---

You can follow every game from Euro 2024 live with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.