Serbia, Slovenia meet in Group C clash at UEFA Euro 2024 on TSN
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Both Serbia and Slovenia acquitted themselves well in their opening matches. How far they are able to advance at UEFA Euro 2024 could come down to how they perform when they battle at Munich Football Arena.
Serbia drew the tough assignment of opening the tournament against England, runner-up at the last European Championship.
They were able to contain most of England’s fire power with resolute defending, but a Jude Bellingham header in the 13th minute was the difference in a 1-0 defeat in their first game in Germany.
Now Serbia, making their first appearance at the tournament since they became an independent nation, turns their attention to Slovenia, looking for three points to bolster their hopes of advancing to the Round of 16.
"We want to be braver than we were against England from the first minute and make sure to show our strongest side and exploit all of [Slovenia's] weaknesses,” said Serbia defender Nikola Milenkovic. “How we start is important, and we want to set the tone from the beginning. We are the tallest team at the EURO, and we need to be even more dangerous from set-pieces.”
Serbia scored 15 goals in qualifying for UEFA Euro 2024 with five of those coming from headers.
"They have some great individual players, a very compact team and they are really dangerous on the break so we, and especially in the defenders, need to be focused on that," said Milenkovic.
Slovenia bounced back after conceding a 17th-minute goal to Denmark’s Christian Eriksen to earn a 1-1 draw in their first game of the competition.
Erik Janza blasted home the equalizing marker, with the help of a deflection, to send Slovenia home with a point.
"We knew it was going to be a tough match,” said Janza after the draw. “We had some problems in the first half but later we managed to pull together and get this draw. When the ball came to me, I just closed my eyes and kicked with all the power I've got. Soon another difficult match awaits us, but we have an open path."
Slovenia is still looking for their first victory ever at the European Championship. They posted two draws and a loss at UEFA Euro 2020, their only other trip to the tournament.
"Many of my players have never played such a big competition,” said Slovenia head coach Matjaz Kek. “When we saw something was possible today, they started playing. I think we will learn from this. When this team plays their second or third big tournament, they will be much stronger from the outset."
The teams met twice during the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League, playing to a 2-2 draw in Slovenia and with Serbia earning a 4-1 victory on home soil.