Gareth Southgate is expecting another difficult test when his England side take on Denmark at EURO 2024 on Thursday.

The Three Lions beat Serbia 1-0 in their opening match on Sunday and another win would guarantee them a spot in the last 16 of the competition.

Here is what Southgate had to say in full.

Reflections on the Serbia result and performance…

I was delighted with the first half hour, we used the ball really well and were in complete control of the game. We got the goal and I think we used a lot of emotion in the first half, our energy levels dropped a bit after that. But in the moments where we didn't keep the ball as well our defending as a team and in particular our back four was outstanding.

Serbia were behind in the game so they had to come forward. We also had a lot of players that haven't had lots of 90 minutes. That was Kieran Trippier's first 90 minutes for three or four months. Adding to that, the first games in tournaments are unique occasions. Even our most experienced players were talking about how the atmosphere was and how they felt before the game. There was a lot of expectation on the team and I think everybody knows the consequence of a poor result. Subconsciously, that can have a big effect. We've talked to the players about how pleased we were, the things that we need to do better, and we move onto the next challenge.

On Bukayo Saka's importance to the team…

He has always had the attributes that he has in terms of his technical ability and the speed. I guess what's developing is his game understanding and his confidence on the biggest stage – although, to be honest, we saw that in the last EUROs anyway. He is just becoming a more and more complete player and is a fabulous boy to work with.

On Marc Guehi's tournament debut against Serbia…

He did what he does every week. Sometimes it's not actually playing against the level of opponent that's hard, it's playing for England. He managed to cope with both those things brilliantly. He's a boy who's normally positioned in the right place so you don’t see many desperate lunging late challenges, he's normally positionally really sound. Sometimes I think he doesn't catch the eye because of that. He was very calm, defended on the front foot, used the ball well. They're all things we know he has but it was great to see him transfer that into a big match.

I didn't say a lot to him because sometimes you can fill people's heads with too much. I felt he was ready, I didn't think he needed a long talk from me. We'd picked up coaching points during the week with the group and with him individually but I had belief in him and sometimes the best way of showing that belief is to say very little.

On what he expects from Denmark…

I know [Denmark manager] Kasper Hjulmand really well and he's a very good coach. The detail of preparation will be excellent. They had some really good passages of play in their first game so I'm sure they'll feel it was a game they could have won. We know from previous games with them that they’ve been extremely difficult for us to play against. We know a lot of their players from the Premier League as well and it's going to be another very tough test. They're tactically flexible and a lot of the same players from EURO 2020 are still either starting or in the squad. But a few young players have also emerged.

On Christian Eriksen's journey since EURO 2020…

It was wonderful to see him score on Sunday having sat in a hotel and watched the game three years ago when he collapsed in Copenhagen. To see him score in his next performance at the finals was something special on a human level. It restores your faith. I don't know him but he seems a really good guy and I know a couple of our guys that have played with him felt that.

Match Stats

● This will be the fourth encounter between Denmark and England at a major tournament, across the UEFA EURO (3) and FIFA World Cup (1). Denmark have so far won none of the previous three meetings (D1 L2), scoring only one goal in the process, Mikkel Damsgaard’s free-kick in the semi-final of EURO 2020.

● There have only been five goals scored in the last four meetings between Denmark (2) and England (3) in all competitions.

● Denmark have won just one of their last six group stage games at the UEFA European Championship (D1 L4), beating Russia 4-1 in EURO 2020 to ensure qualification to the round of 16.

● Denmark completed 583 passes and enjoyed a 89 per cent passing accuracy in their 1-1 draw against Slovenia in their EURO 2024 opener, both record highs for the Danes that Opta has on record (since 1980) at the European Championship.

● England won 1-0 against Serbia in their opening match at EURO 2024. The Three Lions have never won their opening two matches at a European Championship tournament.

● England only had 12 touches in Serbia’s box in their 1-0 win, their lowest total of touches in the opposition box in a European Championship game since 2012 against Ukraine (also 12).

● England manager Gareth Southgate took charge of his 20th match at a major tournament in their 1-0 win over Serbia, becoming just the 16th manager to do so across the World Cup and EUROs. England average 1.9 goals per game under him at major tournaments, the best ratio of any Three Lions boss.

● Christian Eriksen created seven chances from set plays in Denmark’s 1-1 draw with Slovenia, the most by a player in a European Championship match since Gary McAllister in 1992 for Scotland against Germany (8).

● Jude Bellingham became the first player to play at two European Championship tournaments before the age of 21 in England’s 1-0 win over Serbia. He is also the second England player to score at two major tournaments before turning 21 (also scored vs Iran at the 2022 World Cup), along with Michael Owen who scored at the 1998 World Cup and EURO 2000.

● Denmark’s Christian Eriksen scored his first ever goal at the European Championship in their 1-1 draw with Slovenia. At 32 years and 123 days old, he became the oldest Dane to score at the UEFA EURO and oldest at a major tournament since a 33-year-old Jon Dahl Tomasson at the 2010 World Cup.