Roy Hodgson: not who England want, but perhaps what they need
Roy Hodgson: not who England want, but perhaps what they need
By Oliver Sparrow, writing from London
So, the FA have finally got their man. The man they have been so patiently waiting for. The man everyone loves. The man doing so well in the Premier League. The man so obviously the right choice for the England job – Roy Hodgson.
“What!?” – I hear you cry. That’s right, Roy Hodgson. The FA have refused to be harangued by old ‘Arry’s chums in the media. They’ve even ignored the unbounded tweeting wisdom of Messrs Ferdinand and Rooney. Instead of the knee-jerk appointment of Harry Redknapp which so many expected, and perhaps desired, they have taken a measured approach, thought carefully, and hired the man who they believe fits the bill.
It’s not the big statement, marquee managerial appointment that was widely expected. Then again, where has that got England in the past? Keegan was brought in in 1999 to inject some passion and vibrancy. Misguided passion translated into poor results and bad tactics. Sven was brought in to replace Keegan. A calm Scandinavian head to steady the ship. Eventually the press along with the FA grew tired of poor old Sven, despite fairly decent results, and appointed his English understudy Steve McClaren. This short-sighted appointment resulted in the Wally with the brolly failing to even qualify for Euro 2008. By then it really was time for a change. Bring on Fabio Capello – the man whose mantelpiece isn’t long enough to hold all of his winners’ medals. Surely if he can’t guide England to success, no-one can… Turned out the players didn’t much care for his regimented approach. Not having a firm grasp of the English language probably didn’t help, either.
Using the same reactionary logic, the next manager should be an Englishman who the press and the players get on with – Harry Redknapp. He seemed nailed-on. The man who all the players seem to adore. The man to bring back some passion and enthusiasm to the dressing room. Not the entirely more reserved Hodgson, whose star had dramatically faded after a torrid tenure at the helm of an ailing Liverpool side. Hodgson is the logical choice, though…
He has plenty of previous international experience, having managed Switzerland, the UAE and Finland. He took the Swiss to the 1994 World cup, their first since 1966 (and notably one for which England failed to qualify) as well as Euro 1996. The Swiss even reached the dizzying heights of third in the FIFA World Rankings under Hodgson. His time in charge of the UAE was less distinguished, but he should be commended for attempting to coach a team of players which Hodgson himself described as “basically lazy” and that many said were uncoachable. His time in Finland was more impressive, taking them to within three points of qualifying for Euro 2008, which would have been their first ever major tournament appearance.
Hodgson also has extensive European club experience. He has won titles in Sweden and Denmark, led Swiss side Neuchatel Xamax to wins over Celtic and Real Madrid, managed Inter Milan as well as spells at Udinese and Norwegian club Viking. Whilst his only real top-tier European club appointment was at Inter, the amount and variety of experience that Hodgson has accrued is impressive, (especially when compared to Redknapp who hasn’t even managed outside the south of England) and is indicative of a scholar of the European game. His experiences outside Britain can only have served to enrich his knowledge of football as a whole.
His time at Liverpool may have sullied his reputation for domestic fans recently, but it should not be forgotten that he took Blackburn to a sixth-place finish and European qualification in 1998 and Fulham to the Europa League final in 2010. Fulham’s Europa League run was nothing short of sensational, beating holders Shakhtar, Italian runners-up Juventus and German champions Wolfsburg. At the end of the 2009-10 season Hodgson was voted LMA Manager of the Year. However, a horrible time at Liverpool the season afterwards is being touted by some as a reason why Hodgson shouldn’t have been offered the England job. His record there was fairly awful, only second to the worst ever Liverpool managerial win percentage in the dark days of Souness. It should be noted, though, that Liverpool were a club in crisis when he arrived, and weren’t doing too well this season (until recently) under the reign of King Kenny who replaced Hodgson in January 2011. Hodgson has done better at West Brom since then, guiding them to their highest league finish for three decades of 11th in 2011, and they are currently lying 10th in the Premier League.
There will be doubts amongst some that Hodgson will be able to cut it in such a high profile role, having not done too well at either Inter or Liverpool. Calm, polite, but seemingly somewhat flustered in the media limelight during his time there, the depth of his skin will once again be tested. The pressure from the English media will be horrendous, as ever, but if the FA were looking for a man with the experience to be able to deal with it, you couldn’t hope for a sager candidate than Hodgson.
Another question is whether he will be able to deal with the hyper-inflated egos of the England team. This man-management is something that Redknapp is endlessly praised for, but is also used as a beating stick by those who chastise Hodgson for his time at Liverpool. Only time will tell whether Hodgson will be able to command the respect of his players and garner a camaraderie and team-spirit that the English media insist was so sorely missing under the authoritarian, and perhaps often unintelligible, reign of Fabio Capello. Hopefully, though, the players are intelligent enough to see that it is only in their best interests to get behind Hodgson.
Hodgson isn’t a PR lapdog like Harry, though. Hodgson is an intelligent tactician. If you disagree, take some time to read this rather excellent article by the brilliant Jonathan Wilson which extols Hodgson’s virtues during Fulham’s Europa League run. He sets his teams up to get a result. He is a fan of 4-4-2, which is seemingly unfashionable at the moment, but it’s a formation that has worked for England in the past and there’s no reason for it not to be successful again. Hodgson’s teams hold their shape, often rigidly so. Boring to some, effective to others.
His teams work hard, very hard. This, lest we forget, is what the English are best at. Working hard, keeping discipline, and pressurising the opposition when they lose the ball. Counter-attacking football gets the goals. This is how England beat Spain recently, this is how Chelsea beat Barca, this is how Greece won Euro 2004. It may not be as pretty to watch as a tiki-taka-inspired Spanish team, but it is effective. Would England fans rather see an all-out attacking style that gets destroyed (note the game against Germany in World Cup 2010) or a more disciplined one that gets results? History doesn’t remember the losers.
That’s not to say Hodgson’s teams can’t play, though. One only has to think back to Fulham’s European run to remind themselves. Dempsey, Murphy, Duff, Zamora et al passed the ball beautifully. Hard-working football with a disciplined structure need not be conflated with route-one football. Hodgson’s teams know when to pass, because they have been drilled that way. Hard work on the training pitch translates to results on matchday.
One major problem with Hodgson’s appointment coming so soon before a major tournament is that he won’t have time to drill his players. Getting them to play in the way he wants is going to take time. If England do badly at Euro 2012 the media daggers will be out for Roy. The players might immediately lose faith in their new manager. Both parties need to be aware, though, that Hodgson needs to be given time. There is every chance that his methods will work, they just need to believe in him. In the Wilson article, Fulham’s Simon Davies says about his manager (then Hodgson):
“We’re two and a half years down the line now, so we’re all converted”.
That’s a lot of time for an England manager, but if it’s time that he’s afforded, it might just be that the English players, media and fans will be converted, too.
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