Explained: Why Jude Bellingham and Trent Alexander-Arnold did 'wolf' celebration after Real Madrid star's opening goal for England at Euro 2024

The Real Madrid midfielder – who is full of confidence following La Liga and Champions League triumphs at club level in 2023-24 – got the Three Lions off to the perfect start when powering home a header inside 13 minutes against Serbia.

Bellingham broke out a number of celebrations – gesturing to his ears, performing a knee slide and his trademark hero pose before working through a routine with Alexander-Arnold. He said of that act, which saw both drop to one knee before placing a splayed hand over their face: “The celebration was from a game we play called ‘Wolf’ and one of the staff always holds his face like that when he doesn’t know what’s going on. So it was more a celebration for the backroom staff who put in so much work every day and they won’t receive any awards like this [his man-of-the-match trophy] or get to have the moments we get to have on the pitch, but we value them so much and it’s important going through the tournament that we keep that atmosphere.”

The game in question sees one player selected as the ‘wolf’ in a murder mystery, while everybody has their eyes closed, with the others then having to work out who was picked. It is a pastime that has been popular in the England squad for a while, with captain Harry Kane saying at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar: “There are about 16 or 17 of us who play Wolf and it is a great way to kill some time. It also helps with team bonding. When they put that wolf card in, you have to start lying and it is not easy, so I think I am a better villager than I am a wolf. There are definitely a few who are better than me at deceiving people.”

England battled their way to a 1-0 victory over Serbia, courtesy of Bellingham’s goal, and will be hoping to put in an improved performance – while having more cause for celebration – when facing Denmark in their second Group C fixture on Thursday.