Roy Hodgson is the old soldier who refuses to stop marching and proves ex-England managers CAN thrive
SunSport columnist salutes Palace boss and says he is a true gentleman, like current Three Lions chief Gareth Southgate
ROY HODGSON is an old soldier who refuses to stop marching, never mind fading away.
Discarded England managers rarely do much more than hang around in less fancy surroundings — marked as nearly men. Or, more often, as never-anywhere-near-it men.
But once you realise only two of the 17 guys to follow Sir Alf Ramsey made a World Cup semi-final, it is easier to gauge their later achievements.
Hodgson’s record in international competition was modest, beginning at Euro 2012 with shootout agony against Italy.
It ended four years later in, some would say, embarrassment.
To be fair, the draining of English players from the Premier League did not leave him huge choice.
Especially when you compare his options with, say, the side Sir Bobby Robson took the World Cup semis at Italia 90.
Still, this was true of Gareth Southgate’s men in Russia.
Neither could call on talents like Paul Gascoigne, Gary Lineker, Peter Beardsley or Chris Waddle.
Sir Bobby was judged by the FA before the finals, hilariously as it turned out, to be surplus to requirements.
So he left and became probably the best-known English manager of European clubs, including Barcelona — rivalled only by Hodgson himself.
MOST READ IN FOOTBALL
Otherwise, post-England careers have been strikingly average.
Graham Taylor was never quite the terrific club manager he had been after his England stint. Steve McClaren travels club to club — and is now struggling at QPR.
The calls for Sir Bobby’s head had been intense before his Italian job.
And while Hodgson never suffered quite the same stick, his stock was not exactly high after the Three Lions shocker at the 2014 World Cup.
Two years later, he was iced as England humiliatingly lost to Iceland in the last 16 of the Euros.
A younger Hodgson had defied the norms by building a managerial career in European footballing backwaters before landing the Inter Milan job.
With typical diligence, he learned Italian to add to his list of languages — now eight, I believe.
This comment from ex-Inter president Massimo Moratti is typical of so many: “When Roy came we were in trouble.
"He didn’t panic — he was calm and made us calm.”
Early last season, Crystal Palace came calling for Hodgson, then 70. Reviving the club was a high point of this football-obsessed man’s life.
When you’ve managed 22 clubs over 42 years, you know all football’s questions — and quite a few of the answers.
How else do you think he persuaded Wilfried Zaha to stay?
You also try to create an atmosphere of trust around the club.
Current England boss Southgate thinks like that and he, like Hodgson, began as a youngster at Selhurst.
They are among the absolute gentlemen of football. Have a good season, both of you.
E20 stand-off simply absurd
DAYS before Saturday’s first home game of the season, E20 told us it was not reinstating our honours board at the London Stadium.
The absurd reason given by the stadium owner was that West Ham should pay for maintenance of the big screen.
So if we did not cough up, our honours list would not be returning around the mid-tier.
This board is a clear right in our contract and I can only apologise to fans — and reassure them we are doing everything in our power to get this sorted.
I am appealing for common sense to prevail at E20, so we can at last work together to ensure the stadium achieves its full potential.