Doubts at back offer Southgate excuse to release attacking handbrake

DUESSELDORF, Germany : The attacking options available to England head coach Gareth Southgate are so rich ahead of their Euro 2024 opener against Serbia on Sunday that grumbling about the team's perceived defensive weaknesses could be regarded as alarmism.

After all, Serbia should be so overworked dealing with a forward line spearheaded by Harry Kane and featuring players such as Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka that attacks of their own will be few and far between.

England, whose bench will also boast an array of offensive weapons, will be expected to sweep past Serbia in Gelsenkirchen and kickstart what many are predicting will be a march to the nation's first tournament triumph for 58 years.

But while Group C, which also features Denmark and Slovenia, should not prove too challenging for Southgate's men his patched-up defence will come under intense scrutiny, especially with far tougher hurdles on the horizon.

An injury to Harry Maguire - so often the target for criticism - has left England looking vulnerable in the central defensive area, especially as his usual partner John Stones started only 12 Premier League games for Manchester City last season and has had injury and illness issues in the build-up.

Maguire's likely replacement Marc Guehi has no previous tournament experience and missed three months of Crystal Palace's season with a knee injury.

Southgate's first-choice left back Luke Shaw has not played since mid-February and was regarded as a "long shot" for the opening game despite being selected in the squad.

Newcastle United right back Kieran Trippier could well start as left back for England against the Serbians while Kyle Walker is expected to play at right back, although he could switch to the centre