Roy Hodgson will likely retire from football management following England’s premature exit from Euro 2016 at the hands of minnows Iceland.
You don’t need us to describe the farce that we all would have witnessed yesterday, but it is not just the Iceland game which will see Hodgson quit football, though, that was indeed the straw that broke the 68-year-old camel’s back. Lacklustre performances, no creativity and seemingly no passion have all been ever too frequent for this England side in the major tournaments under Hodgson. The fans and F.A have had enough.
The ex-Fulham, Liverpool and most recently West Brom manager, who also had spells with Switzerland and Finland earlier on in his career, resigned immediately after Monday’s match. This seemed a likely move and one made with the intention of maybe trying to go out with some sort of dignity, with the chances of the F.A renewing his contract about as likely as Iceland (ranked 34th in the world) scoring two goals in the opening 20 minutes against a top 10 team who haven’t conceded two that quickly in nine years… Oh wait hang on.
Despite initially refusing twice to face the media to give the long-term suffering English public a deserved explanation, if not apology, Hodgson did eventually find his gonads and showed up at press conference on Tuesday afternoon.
Nothing was said about his future directly in terms of the next club he may manage, but a lot can be inferred by the Englishman’s answers. He was clearly not relishing the imminent inquest from the media and from the public for perhaps months to come, questioning why he was even present at the press conference.
‘Why am I even here?’ He said at the beginning of the conference.
‘There is nothing more I can say that I haven’t already mentioned in my statement yesterday.’
The statement Roy was referring to was the seemingly pre-planned speech that he unveiled minutes after getting back into the changing room following the defeat, which further angered already disgruntled (to say the least) fans. It is improbable, if not impossible, to fathom that he wrote the speech in the very few minutes that he had between the full-time whistle and the beginning of the post-match press conference.
This means that he must have gone into the Iceland game believing his side may fall short, something that as a football-loving nation who longs for our team to succeed, is completely inconceivable. There were further signs that he had lost his head long before Iceland Gate, with reports suggesting that many of the players were baffled by his tactics and by some of his decisions throughout the tournament- resting six players for England’s final group game against Slovakia for one.
All-in-all though, we just cannot see him getting another shot as a manager. This is one of those shoot-yourself-in-the-foot career-killers that there’s just no coming back from akin to a butcher announcing he is vegan or a politician declaring themselves against democracy. He seems like a beaten man and no club is going to want a manager who puts their striker on corners. It is not like he needs to work for money either, as Hodgson was the highest paid manager at Euro 2016, earning £3.5million per year. So you heard it here first guys, Roy is going in for retirement.
Speculation over the international careers of captain Wayne Rooney and senior figure Joe Hart was also heavy. Although Rooney is only 28-years-old, he has frequently underperformed and failed to step up at major tournaments, much more than Portugal’s case with Cristiano Ronaldo, since he burst onto the scene as a 16-year-old at Euro 2004. He has denied reports of his departure from international football, and it is unlikely that he will not kick a ball for England ever again, but it is not entirely out of the question.
Hart, also seemingly too young to bow out, has also been heavily scrutinised. Hart himself admitted that two of the goals at the tournament were his fault and that he should have saved them, and some now are calling for his head. However, keepers hit their prime later than outfield players, and so his international retirement is far more unlikely than Rooney’s.
One thing is for sure, though, Hodgson is gone and will not be in charge for England’s next game against Slovakia on 4th September; a World Cup qualifier. Under 21s manager Gareth Southgate, who recently won the illustrious Toulon Tournament, is the bookies favourite to be Roy’s successor.
