Euro 2024: Group C Preview
England's optimism in their men's team may be at an all-time high, and golden boy/Ballon d'Or candidate/newly-crowned Champions League winner Jude Bellingham is a big reason why
Slovenia
FIFA Rank: 57th
Qualified as: Group H runner-up
The Skinny
Longtime members of Yugoslavia, Slovenia's competitive record as an independent nation, particularly in this tournament, is limited. With only one other Euros appearance (2000) and two World Cup appearances (2002 and 2010) ever, they have never seen past the group stages of a major tournament. They came close in both World cup appearances, though, with a combined 6 points and two 3rd-place finishes. With an experienced squad that has sneaky talent, and an impressive qualifying campaign that saw them finish even with groupmates Denmark and ahead of 2021 qualifiers Finland and Northern Ireland, the Kekci will have the belief that they can surprise some folks and reach the latter stages of the Euros for the first time.
The Best XI
Slovenia may be one of the biggest underdogs at these Euros, but they can lay claim to one of the best players in the tournament and indeed, one of the best in the world at his position. Atlético Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak has for some time now, had only the likes of Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Marc Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona), Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid) and Alisson (Liverpool) considered in the same elite tier of keepers; the latter two are not playing in this tournament, and the former two, both Germans, play for the same team. He'll be bastioned by an experienced back line, including Serie A regulars Jaka Bijol (Udinese) and Petar Stojanović (Sampdoria). In attack, the Slovenian star man will be RB Leipzig's Benjamin Šeško, although a return of longtime star Josip Iličić, a key figure in Atalanta's rise to top-tier club in recent history, will be greeted warmly, especially if he can rediscover anything resembling his form from his time in Italy. In the likely starting midfield trio, the Slovenians can rely on the services of starters for Udinese, Panathinaikos, and Fenerbahçe, respectively.
Denmark
FIFA Rank: 21st
Qualified as: Group H winner
The Skinny
Denmark has experienced quite the rollercoaster in their tournament appearances over the last decade-plus. De Rød-Hvide ("The Red and Whites") crashed out unceremoniously in the group stages at the 2010 World Cup, then failed to qualify for the next one in 2014 as well as the 2012 and 2016 editions of the Euro Cup. In the 2018 World Cup, however, they went undefeated in regulation, holding both eventual finalists France and Croatia to a draw, before ultimately falling in penalties to the latter. Looking to build off that positive momentum in front of a home crowd in Copenhagen, their 2021 Euros got off to a horror start as star player Cristian Eriksen collapsed on the pitch and was feared dead until he was rushed off to the hospital and ultimately saved; likely relatedly, the Danes lost their first two matches. But then came a dominant victory over Russia which salvaged their knockout stage placement, and they did not disappoint in that stage, logging two more dominant victories before their miracle run ended in the semifinals, to England in overtime at Wembley Stadium (and off the back of a dodgy penalty call). Last tournament, however, was a 2022 World Cup that felt like a retread of their 2010 experience: hopes that they would build off a good Euros performance and advance from a fairly easy group were snuffed out with three lackluster performances and an early trip home. But, much of that 2021 squad is still here, albeit with more mileage on their legs, having qualified without much of a worry; which version of De Rød-Hvide will show up in Germany?
The Best XI
The headline here will of course be the return of Cristian Eriksen to the tournament that so nearly took his life after just 40 minutes or so last time. Fortunately, the midfielder has not had any health scares since that instance, and while he is past his peak Tottenham Hotspur days, he remains a quality Premier League attacking player for Manchester United. His United teammate Rasmus Højlund is a likely candidate to lead the line with RB Leipzig forward Yussuf Poulsen, who has been Denmark's foremost attacker in the last several years. Behind them, Tottenham's Pierre-Emile Højberg and Morten Hjulmand of Portuguese champions Sporting CP provide a solid midfield pivot. The veteran central duo at the heart of Denmark's last line, captain Simon Kjær (AC Milan) and vice-captain Kasper Schmeicel (Copenhagen) will likely anchor the central CB and goalkeeper spots for Denmark one last time. They're just two pieces of what could be a very strong back 6, though, that also includes starters at-- from left to right --Wolfsburg, Crystal Palace, Barcelona and Roma.
Serbia
FIFA Rank: 33rd
Qualified as: Group G runner-up
The Skinny
Much like groupmates Slovenia, Serbia technically has tasted a fair bit of success in its days as a member of Yugoslavia. Since becoming an independent nation, however, they have failed to ever reach a knockout stage of a major tournament. Unlike the Slovenes, thought, this fact for Serbia is tinged with disappointment and confusion rather than resigned expectation: despite routinely boasting a teamsheet full of players at some of Europe's top teams, this is the first time the Orlovi (Eagles) have qualified for the Euros since the dissolution of Yugoslavia. And their World Cup history as an independent nation has been less than satisfactory: they had the worst finish of any team in 2006, and despite being the 2nd-highest ranked team in their group at the 2010, 2018 and 2022 World Cups, they exited each of those tournaments in last place in their group. Serbia once again has an enviable amount of talent in their starting XI, and enters off the back of an impressive qualifying campaign; is this the year they finally put all the pieces together in the major tournament?
The Best XI
One problem with Serbia's squad is that three of its best players in recent memory all play striker, and barring a radical new formation being employed by manager Dragan Stojković, no team is likely to play with 3 strikers. You can use 2, though, and while I doubt Stojković will do the same, I personally would drop all-time leading goalscorer Aleksandar Mitrović, who took the bizarre step of heading to Saudi Arabia at the peak of his career, in favor of Juventus' Dušan Vlahović and Milan's Luka Jović. Captain Dušan Tadić, fresh off a terrific year with Fenerbahče, will likely join them in attack, leading a midfield that could include starters at Juventus, Torino and Sevilla. Thin at fullback, I think the Eagles might be best served by a trio of good center-backs from Werder Bremen, Fiorentina, and Salzburg, resepctively, who could barricade Chelsea backup keeper Ðorde Petrović.
England
FIFA Rank: 4th
Qualified as: Group C winner
The Skinny
Whaat can I say about England's history and hopes for this tournament that hasn't already been bellowed at you, probably drunkenly, by an English fan? I tease, but really, while England's record of futility at major tournaments and their passionate fans' ability to work themselves into errantly believing each time that this is going to be the year their heartbreak ends are both well-documented, you'd have to not be paying attention to England in the Gareth Southgate era to not realize this really could be the Three Lions' breakthrough. Since the manager arrived seven years ago, England reached the semifinals of both the 2018 World Cup and 2019 Nations League, before reaching the Final of Euro 2021, coming within two penalty kicks of their 2nd international trophy ever. The last time we saw them at a major tournament, it was 18 months ago at the 2022 World Cup, where they played like one of the best teams in the competition, before a narrow loss to longtime rivals and eventual runners-up France in the quarterfinals. The weakness in this team are few and far between; just as it was with the 'golden generation' in England from the late 90s to early aughts, the question will simply be whether all the wildly talented individual parts can coalesce seamlessly?
The Best XI
This is the deepest talent pool England have had in quite some time, perhaps even in my lifetime, so you would be hard-pressed to find a bad XI out of the squad Gareth Southgate called up for the tournament. And I can almost guarantee you this is not the XI, nor the formation even, that the manager will roll out on matchday 1. But based on club form, it's the permutation that's the most drool-inducing to me. That midfield/forward front 6 could include the Bundesliga Golden Boot winner (Harry Kane), the Premier League Player of the Year (Phil Foden), the two highest-scoring English players in the Premier League (Foden and Cole Palmer), two Player of the Year finalists and stars for league runners-up Arsenal (Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice), and a generational star in Jude Bellingham. The latter is the reigning "FIFA Golden Boy," won last year's Bundesliga Player of the Season with Borussia Dortmund, and this year's La Liga Player of the Season and Champions League Final with Real Madrid. He will be the focal point of this side, of course, but far from its only weapon. Many pundits in the media have hemmed and hawed about how the defense could be a weakness for England, and they're not wrong, but probably only in comparison to how good the players in front of the defense are. This is a back line that could still feature two starters at one of the best clubs in the world (Manchester City's John Stones and Kyle Walker), and a pair of Liverpool fullbacks that are uniquely talented and coming off one of their best seasons yet for the proud club in the dynamic Trent Alexander-Arnold and versatile Joe Gomez. Between the sticks, I have long been a Jordan Pickford skeptic, but the Everton keeper has long been reliable for England, and is coming off perhaps his best Premier League season yet.
Group Prediction
Although pre-tournament expectations can make a fool out of many a prognosticator, I just can't foresee any scenario in which England doesn't win this group and Slovenia don't finish last place. The question then becomes who between Denmark and Serbia win their match against each other, and/or manage to take points off England. As you can see above, I'm not convinced there will be a winner in the '2nd Place Derby,' but I do think Denmark is poised nicely to frustrate England into a draw in their second match of the group stage, historically the most difficult to get up for.
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