Watch: Jude Bellingham lifts England to victory in opening match at Euro 2024

Per The Athletic, Serbia finished with more shots (six), chances created (four) and saves (two) than England. The Three Lions also started to slow down in the second half, nearly allowing a goal in the 82nd minute. 

"For the first 30 minutes or so, it felt like this was a newly expansive and confident England team, playing a more advanced brand of football than we had ever seen from them before, wrote The Athletic's Jack Pitt-Brooke. "Then, over time, it became something slightly more familiar, as England sat back and dug in, conceded chances, and what initially looked like a breeze became something different."

According to FIFA rankings, England is the fourth-best team in the world, while Serbia is 33rd, so it's a bit of a surprise to see it barely hold on to a victory.

Bellingham indicated he's not worried about the margin of victory, though, and the squad should improve before the end of the tournament.

"The first half shows why we can score goals against any team, and the second half shows we can keep a clean sheet against any team," Bellingham told the BBC, via The Athletic's Max Matthews. "Overall, we'll be happy with that performance."

England can count on Bellingham. In 28 matches with Real Madrid in La Liga this past season, the 20-year-old scored a career-high 19 goals.