adminLONDON. — Studious and well-travelled, Roy Hodgson has the weighty responsibility of ending England’s 50 years of major soccer tournament heartache at the European Championship in France.
After a run to the quarter-finals at Euro 2012, less than two months after succeeding Fabio Capello as manager, Hodgson presided over a galling group-phase exit at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. A flawless Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, allied to the exciting emergence of Harry Kane and Dele Alli, has raised expectations, but Hodgson has greeted the fervour with characteristic caution.
“It’s the impossible question,” the 68-year-old said when asked whether, in light of England’s stirring 3-2 victory over world champions Germany in March, his side could win the tournament. If I say ‘yes’, then it’s ‘Hodgson thinks we can win the Euros’. If I say it’s a tough ask, then ‘Hodgson has no confidence in the team’.
“We still don’t really know how this young group would perform in tournament conditions against much more experienced teams like Germany, who are used to reaching finals, and France as the home nation.
“But I believe in the team. Absolutely.” Having previously failed in a high-profile post at Liverpool, Hodgson was seen as an underwhelming choice to succeed Capello when the Italian abruptly stepped down in February 2012. England performed creditably at Euro 2012, falling to Italy on penalties in the last eight, and qualified for the World Cup with an unbeaten record.
But a two-man midfield of Jordan Henderson and the ageing Steven Gerrard was overrun in Brazil, with successive 2-1 losses to Italy and Uruguay seeing England eliminated after just two matches. — AFP.
Online Reporter