Jude Bellingham’s header gave England a 1-0 victory over Serbia, kicking off their quest for a major event trophy for the first time in 58 years. Meanwhile, the Netherlands defeated Poland 2-1 in the last minute on Sunday.
Three years after going into cardiac arrest on the field, Christian Eriksen had a dream comeback to the European Championship, scoring the first goal, but Slovenia held Denmark to a 1-1 draw.
England was tipped to be one of the tournament favorites as Gareth Southgate looks to lead a generation full of promise to success.
On the other hand, England’s lackluster tournament debut in Gelsenkirchen gave them ample opportunity for development.
Bellingham was the exception, as the Real Madrid midfielder’s man-of-the-match performance solidified his place among the game’s young talents.
Before reaching 21, the 20-year-old made history as the first player from Europe to win three major championships.
And on minute 13, he headed in Bukayo Saka’s deflected cross to seal the game’s lone goal, capping an incredible individual effort.
“The people that make up Jude Bellingham are incredible. It’s not exclusive to me. I think that’s because I have such an amazing support system,” the match winner remarked.
Predrag Rajkovic of Serbia turned Harry Kane’s late header onto the bar.
“The absolute goal is to win the cup together”
However, England had to endure a nerve-wracking finish as Veljko Birmancevic’s goalbound attempt was deflected away by Kane and Dusan Vlahovic’s dipping drive was tipped over by Jordan Pickford.
German police had deemed the match to be “high risk,” and prior to kickoff, there had been some minor altercations between opposing fans, resulting in the arrest of seven Serbian fans.
Extreme sub Weghorst
In the 83rd minute, barely two minutes after replacing Robert Lewandowski due to injury, Wout Weghorst scored for the Netherlands to win their first Group D match against Poland.
“I’m overjoyed. This is beyond words, particularly in a championship match. Very unique. For me, this is the perfect situation,” Weghorst remarked.
Hours before kickoff, thousands of Dutch supporters crammed Hamburg’s streets, producing an orange wall of noise.
Adam Buksa put Poland ahead early on, and the fans’ cries reverberated throughout the Volksparkstadion. However, Cody Gakpo, using a deflection, tied the score just before the half-hour mark.
The Oranje squandered a ton of opportunities, including ones from Denzel Dumfries, Memphis Depay, and Gakpo. Ronald Koeman’s team appeared to be at a loss for ideas until Weghorst rushed in to slide home a well-earned victory.
During Denmark’s debut match at the postponed Euro 2020, Eriksen gave way.
The Manchester United midfielder gave the Danes the lead in Stuttgart with a superb strike exactly 1,100 days later.
Eriksen remarked, “I do believe that my story at the Euros is very different from the last one.”
Fortunately, a lot of games have passed since the last time and since it occurred. I was simply glad to be playing again because I felt comfortable doing so.
Three years ago, Denmark rode a wave of emotion following the shock of the Eriksen event to make it to the semi-finals.
However, they were let down by their 2022 World Cup group stage exit and were unable to get off to a strong start.
However, they were let down in the 2022 World Cup group stage and were unable to capitalize on a winning opening as Slovenia earned a draw thanks to a deflected effort by Erik Janza.
The Danes will next play England in a replay of their Euro 2022 semifinal, while Slovenia will play Serbia on Thursday.
