England midfielder Trent Alexander-Arnold says the Three Lions know they need to improve after narrowly beating Serbia in their opening Euro 2024 match.
Jude Bellingham scored the only goal as England won 1-0 in their tense Group C opener.
Serbia pushed forward after the break with Jordan Pickford needing to produce a couple of saves to preserve victory.
Alexander-Arnold conceded that his side “could have performed better” but said it was “very important” to start the tournament with a win.
“In tournament football that’s the only thing that matters,” he said. “Keep up the momentum, don’t get ahead of ourselves.
“We know we need to improve in the tournament. Things to learn but also things we can look at and be happy with.”
Manager Southgate added: “We had to suffer a bit which I think is really good for us. I think to defend the box the way we did was really good for us.”
Southgate also said Bellingham “writes his own script” after the Real Madrid midfielder’s impressive performance.
Bellingham headed home the opener to reward a sparkling start on 13 minutes as England threatened to run away with the win.
“It was a super bit of play in the build-up,” he told BBC Sport. “I think all of our forward players looked really good.”
