Roy Hodgson

[Buzzo]

That story about him verbally ripping a young waitress to bits should be more often told imo.

Maybe some mock up pictures of a young lass in tears for effect...with Roy photo shopped in pointing and snarling...

What story is this?

[Lee]

That story about him verbally ripping a young waitress to bits should be more often told imo.

Don't think I've heard about this?!

[spud_gun]

I know all this Hodgson for England thing started as a bit of a joke but he's actually in with a decent shout, isn't he?

[Daniel 7]

Lot of Liverpool fans thought he was a nice bloke too. Until we saw the weal Woy.

[RichC]

Roy for England!!!

They flatter to decieve every tournament and whoevers in charge I expect it to be the same old rubbish so may as well enjoy him ****ing it up.

[Alex]

****ed if I want him anywhere near England. It would be funny for the first few games when he fails. But I actually like England and want them to do well.

I must be in the Minority.

Thinking about it though, give him a little 5 or 6 game run and let him **** it up. Then get in a proper manager.

[Vermilion]

"nice man"

"lovely bloke"

What planet are these people on?????????

That story about him verbally ripping a young waitress to bits should be more often told imo.

Maybe some mock up pictures of a young lass in tears for effect...with Woy photo shopped in pointing and snarling...

[Tee]

I am praying everyday for him to get the England job. Let them enjoy him......then they will come to realise who and what the real Woy Hodgson is all about.

[Pablo]

It's infuriating

It's the main reason why I'd love him to actually get the job (although there's zero chance of it happening). I'd feel immense satisfaction when the rest of the country finally realised what a massive prick he is.

[Phoenix07]

"nice man"

"lovely bloke"

What planet are these people on?????????

There must be a crack in the space time continuum.

[Shaggy]

"nice man"

"lovely bloke"

What planet are these people on?????????

[Pablo]

A mate of mine on Facebook:

i would 100% prefer roy hodgson as england manager than harry redknapp, thats if we are gona bother with one this time.

Someone sensible:

Are you serious?! Did you not see his time at Liverpool or his general lack of ever winning anything? Another mediocre manager isnt the answer! Nice man but that's about it.

My mate again:

International experience and reasonable performance tho. harry hasn't either, not so long ago people wouldve laughed at him being manager. a good run and our media hail him the saviour. liverpool was in chaos when he was there and they still had more points this time last year from 30 games and limited spends. and a lovely bloke

How can people STILL fall for his ****? How can the general concensus still be that he's a "nice man and a lovely bloke"? I thought he'd been well and truely found out by now. It seems not

[Alex]

Im surprised The Hodge didnt get a nice couple of weeks break when he left us.

[Yozza]

For all his talents, England is a job too far for Roy Hodgson

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/article-2117891/Martin-Samuel-England-job-far-Roy-Hodgson.html

The ideal leader for England, Roy Hodgson was called in one newspaper at the weekend. His team had drawn 1-1 with Wigan Athletic, but that did not matter. In audition terms, results rarely do at West Bromwich Albion. If you want to manage England, it helps to be where expectations are low.

No great pressure at The Hawthorns, no great anticipation of success, either. Not like Tottenham Hotspur. Harry Redknapp has a home game against Stoke City on Wednesday night and failure to accrue three points will certainly not slip beneath the radar.

If Tottenham do not win and Arsenal beat Everton, Redknapp’s team will drop out of the top three for the first time since November 21. Depending on events in Manchester, Chelsea could also be in hot pursuit as Tottenham visit Stamford Bridge on Saturday. It is not unthinkable that Tottenham could end that match in fifth place.

Mid-table stumbling goes unacknowledged; a dramatic fall from grace at the business end of the table does not.

The day Fabio Capello quit as England manager, Redknapp had Tottenham on the shoulder of the Manchester clubs. Eclipsed by City’s spending power and United’s depth and experience, this was probably as good as it was going to get. Most likely Tottenham would continue sitting third, or be caught by the pursuing pack. The only way certainly wasn’t up. It is different for Hodgson.

When Tottenham lost 3-1 to Manchester United two weeks ago, questions were asked of Redknapp’s stewardship. Did he have the tactical nous to take on the elite? Was he being distracted by talk of the England job?

The terrible circumstances around Fabrice Muamba deflected attention on Saturday but Tottenham now return to being a club in crisis. Even had they defeated Bolton Wanderers to reach an FA Cup semi-final, it would have made little difference. This was Tottenham, against Bolton, after all.

Hodgson on a cup run, however, would be feted because West Brom are not expected to compete at a high level. Last week, Albion lost 2-0 to Manchester United at Old Trafford and nobody batted an eyelid.

On the first weekend of the season, when they gave United a very good game at The Hawthorns, all the praise was for the home side despite a 2-1 defeat.

So as Redknapp’s England bandwagon stands idle, courtesy of the Football Association’s inertia, another comes hurtling over the horizon with Hodgson aboard.

Increasingly, he is seen as a viable candidate. And true, he did sterling work at international level with Switzerland and Finland, made West Brom safe in a matter of months and took Fulham to the Europa League final.

Somewhere in the middle of all that, though, is half a year at Liverpool. Do not mention Liverpool. In particular, do not mention what happened to Liverpool on October 17, 2010

That was the day Everton won the Merseyside derby 2-0 to condemn Liverpool to 19th place. ‘Going down,’ jubilant Evertonians sang. They weren’t, of course.

Hodgson began to turn it around and Liverpool had risen to 12th by the time he was sacked and replaced by Kenny Dalglish, who then steered the club to sixth. But what did go down at Goodison Park that day was the belief that Hodgson could comfortably cope with the pressure felt by the manager of England.

For if the Liverpool job is stressful, imagine having a country on your back. At a sporting function last week, FA media folk were doubled with laughter at UK Athletics’ decision to ban this newspaper over the Plastic Brits furore.

‘They’ve had the spotlight we are in every day for one press conference, and they’ve started banning newspapers,’ the FA party howled.

And if Liverpool thought they had it tough over Luis Suarez, remember a similar race-related issue around an England player — that did not even occur in an England shirt — cost the FA their manager and captain, three months before a major international tournament.

Plainly, Hodgson struggled with the intensity of managing Liverpool. After that Everton game, a tetchy and perversely positive appraisal of his team — bar Fernando Torres — ended in a tense exchange with a Scandinavian journalist.

Hodgson was asked about the poor service to the forwards, Torres especially.

‘Are you from Denmark?’ he snapped. ‘Norway,’ replied the visitor. ‘Ah, two countries I never want to work in again,’ Hodgson said, before exiting.

His inquisitor was too polite to go with the obvious rejoinder, but there cannot have been a single person in the room who did not think it. Later, it was explained that having managed FC Copenhagen, Hodgson considers the Danish press too negative. As opposed to Wembley on a wet Wednesday, 2-0 down to Croatia, which is often mistaken for a fortnight in Acapulco.

Hodgson fanciers say he wouldn’t be 2-0 down to Croatia because he is an intelligent tactician with a proven international record. Then again, if the England job can make a fool of Capello in South Africa, anything is possible.

And if Hodgson found it demanding in Denmark, and he certainly laboured under the microscope at Liverpool, how would he put up with the maelstrom around a losing England side?

This is not about courting the media. The England job is not a popularity contest. Nobody would take against Hodgson because he reads books and fails to talk in headlines.

It is a myth about Redknapp’s cosy relationship with the press anyway. He is well-liked because he is approachable and retains a sense of humour but neither trait would spare Redknapp if he delivered a World Cup campaign like Capello in 2010 or a qualifying run in the manner of Steve McClaren, failing to reach the 2008 European Championship finals.

Hodgson has had a national newspaper column, regular broadcast work and a position on various UEFA committees for 16 years, and has as many allies in the press box as Redknapp.

He was in a Cape Town bar with BBC staff and several journalists after England drew 0-0 with Algeria. He is likeable, a good manager with a fine track record who has produced creditable international teams as well as successful club sides. He would be a fine fit for a majority of the teams in the Premier League but not all.

Undoubtedly, Hodgson’s greatest successes have been in quieter waters. He has managed four top English teams, but the biggest two — Blackburn Rovers three seasons after their title win, and Liverpool — were his biggest disappointments.

It can be argued that Hodgson was on a loser from the outset at Anfield. The fans yearned for Dalglish’s return and made that clear as results faltered. Many neutrals sympathised with Hodgson, who also inherited a dressing room that had been turned into a Spanish enclave by Rafael Benitez.

Once Dalglish let it be known that he wanted the job — even before Hodgson had been appointed — his fate was as good as sealed.

A drop to 19th would have been hard enough to take but for the club to be languishing with Dalglish unemployed placed unbearable pressure on the incumbent manager.

Yet, Hodgson had other problems at Anfield. He was considered a decent guy but his training methods were thought monotonous. ‘Two for him, one for us,’ explained a member of his Liverpool squad. He said Hodgson would mostly work in a regimented, methodical way, with only occasional light relief.

Endless reinforcement of defensive structure helped take Fulham through Europe and steered West Brom clear of relegation but high-ability footballers soon tire of drills, drills, drills. Perhaps this is why Hodgson has enjoyed his most favourable reviews at places where he can significantly improve average talent.

Redknapp has impressive rapport with players. They like him, enjoy his style and enough of them took to social media channels in the immediate aftermath of Capello’s departure to make him the popular choice of the England dressing room.

Love for Hodgson is most strongly felt on UEFA technical groups, where he is the English Andy Roxburgh.

Hodgson has spent two decades on the inside and is an admired thinker who once silenced interruptions from a group of players at Blackburn with the put-down: ‘People come a long way to watch my training sessions.’ How Wayne Rooney would feel about that, we cannot say.

Some will argue the reinforcement of basics is what England need. Pep Guardiola at Barcelona works incessantly on recovering the ball. Having Lionel Messi in the team, he probably reckons the lads will know what to do when they get it.

Yet, for all his qualities, Hodgson as England manager would be vulnerable to a repeat of his fate at Liverpool.

Redknapp may not have the overwhelming support felt for Dalglish on Merseyside but there are enough in his corner inside and outside the squad to express powerful regret if he is overlooked and the benefits are not instant.

Isn’t the position difficult enough without this added burden? For Hodgson, England could be another Denmark.

Bollocks gain by Samuel - he's perfect for the England job!

[Le Chef]

Honestly I hadn't heard it before