GdS: An evening to forget – Pavlovic at fault for two goals as England thump Serbia

It was an evening to forget for Serbia as they were totally taken apart by a rampant England, and Strahinja Pavlovic struggled.

For Pavlovic, the switch to a three-man defence at club level with Milan is a change to something he is more familiar with, at least at international level. That is because he is now playing the same role for both – the left-sided centre-back – but that doesn’t mean it will always go well.

An evening to forget

As La Gazzetta dello Sport (via MilanPress) recall, Serbia lost 5-0 yesterday against England in a 2026 World Cup qualifier, and it means that the Three Lions have almost certainly qualified. The Milan defender started, and let himself down with two mistakes.

Serbia had started the match positively, and the former Salzburg man threatened from a corner taken by Lukic, which he headed just wide. However, he was then at fault for England’s second goal as he allowed Noni Madueke to get into the box and score with a direct run in behind.

Photo by AC Milan

Marc Guehi’s goal to make it 4-0 also came from a lapse in concentration by Pavlovic, leaving his opponent to ghost in at the far post. It’s worth remembering that Serbia were down to 10 men at that point following a red card for Nikola Milenkovic.

After a positive first performance against Latvia, Strahinja Pavlovic returns to Milan to reclaim his place at the heart of the Rossoneri defence. The Serbian has no real alternative in the role, so Massimiliano Allegri will have to coach confidence into him.