IS ROY HODGSON THE RIGHT MAN FOR THE ENGLAND JOB?

Is Roy Hodgson the right man for the England Football manager’s job? I don’t know, what I do know is that anyone who accepts the offer of managing the current England team knows he has great challenges to overcome both on and off the pitch and there is no exception to Roy Hodgson. Only time will tell if the English FA have made the right decision by appointing Hodgson ahead of the European Championship.

One thing we do know is that Mr Hodgson is within the category of the FA’s preferred candidates; an English manager. Since Fabio Capello’s departure there seem to be consensus among English fans, players, pundits and the FA that England’s next manager should be English. Now what intrigues me about Hodgson’s appointment is whether he is the best candidate in that category. In fact the run for the job seem to be a one man race until when the FA declared that they have approached Roy Hodgson for the post.

Harry Redknapp was the clear favourite, not only by the pundits and the fans but also by the people he will be working with; the players. Now I don’t know  the FA’s motive behind appointing Roy Hodgson, there are speculations that it is financially motivated because Roy is out of contract at West Bromwich while Harry is still in contract with Tottenham, but if the FA’s decision is not financially motivated as they claim, then I think they have appointed the wrong man.

Harry Redknapp may not be the most appropriate person for the current England job, but among the category of the current English Managers, he is indeed by far the most appropriate. Harry has done a phenomenal job at Tottenham and previously at Portsmouth. Harry has work with some great players and has managed in the World’s greatest football competition, The Champions league, a Year ago. The best that can happen to any manager of the current England team full of problems both on and off the pitch is the support of the men you will be managing, Harry Redknapp has got the endorsement of all the big names in that England squad. I mean I don’t know what the English FA are thinking but for me it was an easy decision. If all the pundits and players should stand out and say that Harry Redknapp will be a perfect choice, I don’t get it why the FA try to play surprise! Surprise! And appoint someone else.

Moreover even Roy Hodgson himself has said that Harry Redknapp is the perfect and the favourite candidate for the job when asked by Journalists in one of his press Conferences. You see Roy might have done a great job with Fulham and Westbrom with limited budgets, have some international experience (In the 1980’s anyway), but his Liverpool experience tells us that this is no guarantee for success with the England national team. What Harry has got and Roy is lacking is experience of working with key England players. Harry Redknapp has worked with key figures in the England Squad like Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Peter Crouch, and Glen Johnson and is currently managing players like Jermaine Defoe, Scott Parker, Aaron Lenon, Ledley King, and Michael Dawson who are all important England players.

It’s no secret that Rio Ferdinand and John Terry feud is a problem any England manager has to sort out before partnering those two players in your centre back, the FA knows that than anyone else does, Personally I will think Harry is more suitable to solving that problem (Or may be minimising it’s impact on the pitch) because I don’t think there is any clear cut solution to that feud given the fact that John Terry has shown us what he is really made of over the years and Rio Ferdinand being a no nonsense man. But given Harry’s relationship with Rio and Frank Lampard (who is a close friend of John Terry I’m assuming) I believe he can get the best out of those two players on the pitch without ever bothering much about their off-field saga.

I wish Roy Hodgson the best of luck in his new role either way.  He is a great manager and has done an amazing job at Fulham and West Bromwich Albion, whether he can take the success he enjoyed at this two clubs to the England national team remains to be seen, I hope he does.

Peace..............