Hodgson: Players must show club form
Reuters - Sunday 10 June 2012, 16:47
England manager Roy Hodgson
called on his players to reproduce the form they consistently
show for their clubs right from the opening Euro 2012 match
against France on Monday.
The 64-year-old Hodgson, in charge of the team for just six
weeks, called on his squad to show what they were made of to end
a dismal run of tournament failures going back to their solitary
World Cup win in 1966.
"I just hope my players play as they are capable of
playing," Hodgson told a news conference on Sunday at the
Donbass Arena.
"We have a team full of major stars in their own teams in a
very competitive league. The Premier League is widely regarded
as one of Europe's top leagues and I see these players
performing week in and week out and playing to the very best of
their ability at home.
"My hope has got to be that they reproduce some of that form
as a team and as individuals when we get out to the field
tomorrow night and in the next matches that follow."
England have rarely been as unfancied as they are going into
a major tournament. Injuries to key players, a suspension that
will keep Wayne Rooney out of the first two matches, and
Hodgson's limited time with the team mean expectations are low.
STERN CHALLENGE
They also start as underdogs against France, who have not
lost for 21 matches since November 2010, and not been beaten by
England for five matches since 1997.
"I suppose apart from all that things are looking quite
good," a relaxed-looking Hodgson joked.
"It is a stern challenge, we are facing a team in excellent
form and 21 matches unbeaten at any level of football, let alone
international football is a fine achievement.
Hodgson said that coming into a European Championship or
World Cup having good form or bad form was not necessarily a
decisive factor.
"It's how your team is going to play on the night," he said.
"How people adjust to the circumstances and most importantly
what you can do as a football team is what matters.
"I have full respect for the French team as we should have
but we will see what we can do."
Asked if after years of failure, England was still a great
football nation or not, a stunned Hodgson replied that it was.
"How far do you want to go back in time?," he said. "1966? I
can go back further than that. We started professional football
in the 1860s or 1870s.
"You can't accuse us of not being a very serious footballing
nation. We're all very much aware that we've not won anything
since 1966, you didn't need to remind me of that.
"We have a chance, as one of the 16 teams here, to show how
good a team we are. I can assure you we'll be doing our best to
prove it on the field of play."
After two 1-0 warm-up wins over Norway and Belgium in
Hodgson's first two games, England skipper Steven Gerrard said
the players were in fine spirits.
"The squad's really happy. We travelled in this morning and
have rested this afternoon and we'll be ready for the French
tomorrow," he said.
"It's hot, but it's hot for both teams. We won't use that as
an excuse. The spirit in the camp's fantastic. The preparation's
gone really well. We're itching to get started."