Discount Roy Hodgson at your own peril

DONETSK, UKRAINE – JUNE 11: In this handout image provided by UEFA, England coach Roy Hodgson talks to the media during a press conference on June 11, 2012 in Donetsk, Ukraine.

In 1940, when Adolf Hitler invaded Paris, the French were forced to surrender. The USA had not yet entered the War and the Soviets were fighting on the other side. Britain was forced to continue the war, resignedly, but doggedly.

For four years after the invasion of France, Hitler envisioned invading Britain. Invade Britain, he said, and the War would be over. He didn’t give Britain a fighting chance in hell. The Battle of Britain began soon after the Swastika was flying over the Eiffel Tower. Not only did Britain drive back the Luftwaffe, as we all know, Britain – with significant help from across the Atlantic and Comrade Stalin on the other side – won the War.

The Germans didn’t give the British a second glance. Nothing was expected of them, from a German perspective.

It is the same with the current English side. They went into Poland-Ukraine with no expectations from fans back home. No expectations meant no pressure. Speaking to BBC’s Football Focus when his side landed at Krakow airport, he said ‘It’s only a good thing,” when asked about pressure during a football game. Football players are under enormous pressure. We, as coaches, put them under enormous pressure – we want a lot from them – because we can only succeed when they succeed. I would expect the players to have confidence and self-belief and if they haven’t, I’ll be saying to them: ‘Why haven’t you got self-belief? If I was as good as you, I’d be very, very confident’.”

Roy Hodgson took the England reins with some very ominous clouds shadowing the manager’s hotseat. Since Fabio Capello’s resignation as England manager early this year, speculation was rife regarding who would be next in line to lead the national side. While it was unanimously agreed that the next England manager had to be English, the FA were yet to settle on one name. For months, the media filled column inches and minutes on radio and television linking Tottenham Hotspurs manager Harry Redknapp to take the Three Lions to Poland-Ukraine, and bookmakers gave Hodgson an outside chance. Not because he was in the running for the position of manager, but simply because he was English.

At the time, John Terry’s now long-running alleged racism feud with QPR defender Anton Ferdinand was oft quoted on the back pages of newspapers, and it was clear that Wayne Rooney would miss England’s first two games in Eastern Europe. And if that wasn’t enough a good enough reason to not want the job, it was England. Nuff zed.

England tend to play with a lacklustre style that simply screams mediocrity despite the sheer amount of talent that coaches for the national setup can select from. Most of them play in the world’s best and most competitive league, but for all their glory at club level, it has been fifty-six years since England won the World Cup on home soil. This remains their sole international accomplishment to date.

Sure, the English have only failed to qualify for three World Cups (1974, 1978, 1994) but have failed to make it past the quarter-finals in every edition, with the exception of 1966, courtesy of a certain Mr. Geoff Hurst, and 1990, where they came fourth.

Their European record is even worse. With the exception of 1996, where they reached the semis – once again at home – and 1968 where they finished third, England have made it past the group stage just once, in 2004, having failed to qualify for five editions (1964, 1972,1976, 1984, 2008).

The Premier League’s rise from strength to strength, which only serves to increase its unpredictability, has gone hand-in-hand with England’s very obvious predictability on the international stage. England’s players – before the Top Four was splintered – traditionally came from Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool, and often drew players from West Ham, Tottenham, Newcastle and several other English clubs. Yet, despite the household name status that these players enjoyed (some more than others) they failed to click at national level.

It wasn’t that they didn’t give their all. Fans in the north of England say they feel disconnected from the team because all of England’s games are played at Wembley, unlike the rest of the Big Five, who rotate their national games throughout the country. Yet England’s Manchester United and Liverpool contingents always gave excellent performances in the England shirt, whether it was Gary and Phil Neville, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Rio Ferdinand or Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher and Michael Owen, just to name a few.

England’s top goalscorer – Sir Bobby Charlton – came from United, while both Jimmy Greaves and Gary Lineker played for Tottenham. Michael Owen has represented both Liverpool and Manchester United. Lineker also had a long spell with Leicester City, as did England’s most capped player, Peter Shilton. Both Bobbies Charlton and Moore have received more than a hundred caps, alongwith David Beckham, while Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard are all nearing that milestone.

Roy Hodgson’s appointment as manager brought with several more questions in its wake, adding to those that were hitherto unanswered. Why did the FA pick ‘Woy?’ Here was a man who’d won nothing in England and not much more outside, with five trophies in Scandinavia and one runners-up medal with Inter Milan in the UEFA Cup.

Well, that little list of honours above just answers the question. No other manager has continental and international experience. Harry Redknapp and Stuart Pearce have no experience managing international teams whatsoever, and neither of them has stepped out of England in managerial capacity.

Not only had Hodgson managed a smattering of clubs across Europe, he has managed several national teams within Europe and beyond, having overseen the national sides of Switzerland, Finland and the United Arab Emirates. They may not be the most high-profile teams, but they mean that Hodgson comes into the England side with the nous that comes from managing an international side: something sharply different to club management.

“What had Roy achieved to land himself this role?” was the question on many an Englishman’s lips when the news was made official. Sadly, in football, an individual’s success is measured by the number of trophies he has won. But should people look at the bigger picture, football is a lot more than what is immediately tangible.

Hodgson, as manager of Switzerland, guided them to their first World Cup in 28 years in 1994. At one point under Hodgson’s reign, the Swiss were ranked third in the FIFA World rankings. Hodgson is still considered a legend for the way in which he revolutionised Swedish football. “I thought it was a very basic way of playing,” says Lars Arnesson, a very influential Swedish coach of Hodgson’s side Halmstad. “They got the ball forward by hitting it upfield and then winning possession rather than playing through the team. But I found Roy an easy man to talk to. He was very clever, with an open mind.”

If only the English fans had an open mind. Hodgson’s exploits outside the country are seldom remembered by those who live within it.

“Of course, my track record, if people bothered to study it, would put me in the same category as [Sir Alex] Ferguson enjoys today, but people don’t talk about what I’ve done outside England,” Hodgson was quoted as saying to the Guardian. “There’s no middle ground in my career: it’s extremes either way.”

He was flung out of the Liverpool job after less than half a season in charge. This was the man who’d gotten Fulham – a side marooned in mid-table – to the Europa League final the season before, yet that was not a good enough reason for the new Liverpool management to stick with him. His players at Fulham speak of him fondly.

Hungarian winger Zoltan Gera put it very eloquently: “When I wake up in the middle of the night, I know what I need to do in the game, I know everything about how we play.” Simon Davies, who played for Hodgson at Fulham, said that “every day in training is geared towards team shape on the match day coming up.”

Hodgson is a man who values team organisation and togetherness, much like Her Majesty’s forces during the Second World War. The most pressing case for him cropped up when he had to name his squad for the Euros. Rio Ferdinand was omitted, while John Terry was picked. A move that brought outrage to England fans, Hodgson had decided to play it safe and pick the player who had better form under the circumstances. Ferdinand’s stock had been dipping over the last few years, despite marshalling an intrepid defence at Manchester United, which featured Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Johnny Evans as his defensive partners. Whatever the truth in the reason behind squad selection, Hodgson maintained that Ferdinand was picked for ‘football reasons’. Even when he lost Gareth Barry, Gary Cahill, John Ruddy and Frank Lampard, Hodgson stuck to his guns, refusing to call up Ferdinand.

Selections gaffes were present, such as why Micah Richards or Kieran Gibbs weren’t called up, even after his squad had lost a vast cache of experience to injuries.

From the outset, Hodgson’s organisational expertise was present. Not for him were the clipboards and charts, graphs and diagrams. He took a very hands-on approach to training, asking his players not to be afraid. Gritty 1-0 draws against Norway and Belgium didn’t draw oohs and aahs, but his system worked. The back line rarely looked troubled and his attackers clicked well and nicked goals at vital moments.

Come France and the opener in Donetsk, and England’s discipline was present for all to see. Against a French side well-equipped with an attacking armory that ran rings in midfield, England held their own, showing a dogged determination to hang on that was not present in past English lineups. It was swelteringly hot in Donetsk and the England players were drained, but they had clung on to a point against the gifted French. Hodgson’s organisational ability had blotted out the French rapier of Ribery, Nasri, Cabaye, Malouda and Benzema.

Hodgson knows his side were shellacked for playing defensively. Patrice Evra later criticised the English style of play, saying, “at times it was like there were 15 bodies on the line at times. It was really difficult for us to find the space. They played in the way that Chelsea played against Barcelona. People laugh. Maybe they want England to play more football but if they win the tournament like that, they will be happy.”

But if Spain can draw comparisons to Barcelona for their style of play and win things in the process, then why can’t parallels be drawn between a supposedly less talented Chelsea side and England, who do not have the class to match Spain.

Even if Hodgson’s side fail to make it far at Euro 2012, critics who gave the England team the once-over and then not spare a second thought for them will be doubting themselves. Hodgson has brought to England a resilience and determination that wasn’t present before. He is not against taking risks, as was seen when he played eighteen-year-old Alex Chamberlain on the wing against Les Bleus, and the Arsenal winger proved to be a breath of fresh air. In Hodgson, England might (just might) have found a manager that could, given his style of play, finally make them realise their potential.

Comparisons are being drawn between Hodgson’s side and that of Bobby Robson, whose team reached the semis of Italia 1990 with no one giving them a prayer.

“There are similarities between Roy and Bobby Robson,” said former Manchester United defender Paul Parker, who played a key role in helping England reach the World Cup semi-finals in 1990. “At Ipswich Bobby turned a yokel team into a major European outfit and took them closing to winning the old Football League and everybody now has the utmost respect for them.

“In a certain way it is similar what he (Hodgson) has achieved, although no one will ever do what Bobby did with a small-town team, but throughout football people have a lot of respect for Roy Hodgson for what he has done and the way he has done it the hard way.

“He has earned respect from foreign players and foreign coaches which is very tough. How many top English players are playing abroad at the moment. People at home have to give him a chance and back him and let’s hope his critics end up with egg on their faces.”

Critics with egg on their faces. It does paint a lovely – if not pretty picture – in my mind’s eye.