Hodgson deserves praise for his work with England - not calls for his head

“There’s been no progress at all since the World Cup,” concluded another contributor over on TalkSport. “The FA need to get rid of Hodgson now before it’s too late.”

The theme continued on both stations for a couple of hours. The conclusion? England’s prospects of achieving anything at Euro 2016 would be enhanced by changing their manager as quickly as possible. Even after Tuesday’s impressive friendly win in Scotland, the calls for Hodgson to depart could still be heard.

They are absolute nonsense. Unless a new manager can suddenly discover six world-class English players that have hitherto been overlooked, their task will be to win as many matches as possible with a squad that lacks genuine star talent and is probably reflective of England’s current world ranking on the fringe of the top 20. And in the last five months, Hodgson hasn’t exactly made a bad fist of that himself.

‘Ah, but England haven’t played anyone half-decent’, will be the immediate riposte, and given Switzerland’s struggles in the first four matches of the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, there is merit to that judgement.

You can only beat what is put in front of you though, and for all that the expansion of the next European Championships makes it all but impossible for a major nation to fail to make the finals in France, Greece, who went further than England at the last World Cup, are having a good go, having lost to the Faroe Islands, Northern Ireland and Romania.

None of Holland, Belgium, Spain, Germany, Italy or Portugal top their group, so England’s position at the head of Group E with four wins from four should not be dismissed lightly. They find themselves in one of the weaker pools, but they are successfully making the most of their good fortune.

In addition, Hodgson has done more than simply win matches, and that is why the suggestion that England have stagnated under his leadership is ill-judged.

When he was appointed in 2012, Hodgson was urged to purge the serial underachievers that had dominated previous England squads to give some emerging younger players a chance.

Since then, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have all left the international scene, with the likes of Luke Shaw, Nathaniel Clyne, Calum Chambers, Ross Barkley, Raheem Sterling and Adam Lallana stepping up to replace them. Saido Berahino might not have played against either Slovenia or Scotland this week, but it was nice to see the West Brom youngster become the latest player to make the transition from the under-21s.

It is hard to think of any other English manager who has been as pro-active in terms of promoting youth and bringing down the average age of the squad, and Hodgson deserves credit for overseeing such a radical period of transition while still winning games, albeit outside of his one major tournament.

He has reenergised Wayne Rooney, and the relationship between manager and captain, which can be so critical at international level, is clearly rock solid. Whatever you think of Rooney, he is arguably the one world-class player in England’s squad, and Tuesday’s performance against Scotland was one of his best international displays for many a season.

Hodgson has also successfully identified Danny Welbeck as the best attacking partner for Rooney, and the pair have shared ten goals in their last seven matches. Their relationship remains a work in progress, but at least it is one that hints at the potential of a long-lasting success.

In midfield, Hodgson clearly regards Jack Wilshere as the best option for the problematic deep-lying role, and while final judgement over the 22-year-old’s suitability for the position must be reserved until England face a side who dominate possession against them, his last two performances have been undeniably impressive. Had Andrea Pirlo produced the floated pass that led to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s headed opener on Tuesday, we would still have been lauding his midfield majesty.

The best tactical make-up for the rest of the midfield remains uncertain, with England’s attacking play against Scotland improving thanks to the abandonment of the diamond system that had previously been trialled.

At least Hodgson is trying different things though, and surely one of the main points of matches at this stage of the international cycle is to test a variety of formations and line-ups to see what works.

Remove Hodgson now, and yet again, we would be starting from scratch. And that’s before we even get to the question of who on earth would be available to replace him.

It is telling that the England supporters who travel the world to watch their team are overwhelmingly supportive of the job Hodgson is doing. They see the side at close quarters in every match, and they know better than anyone else the limitations that exist.

They’re simply happy to see a group of players trying their heart out and displaying pride to wear their national shirt. That hasn’t always been a given, but it’s undoubtedly true under Hodgson and should be regarded as another significant feather in the manager’s hat.

**

IF only things were as positive when it comes to England’s rugby union team. Stuart Lancaster won’t be dismissed with the World Cup now just ten months away, but on the evidence of the last two autumn internationals, England are as far away from having a team that could succeed on home soil next autumn as ever.

Indeed, instead of wondering if England could win the World Cup, plenty of people are starting to question whether they’ll be able to get out of a group that will also contain Australia and Wales.

The half-back pairing hasn’t functioned at all, so it will be interesting to see how George Ford and Ben Youngs fare against Samoa tomorrow. The centre conundrum remains as intractable as ever, and while injury has forced Lancaster’s hand somewhat, it’s hard to imagine moving Owen Farrell to 12 will solve too many problems.

The make-up of the back row is another major issue, which brings us neatly to Sam Burgess. The recent convert from rugby league hasn’t even made his union debut for Bath, and it’s unclear whether his long-term future will be in the centre or back row, yet he increasingly looks like the one person capable of kick-starting England’s World Cup campaign.

Throwing him straight into spring’s Six Nations Championship would be a huge risk. After this month’s defeats to New Zealand and South Africa though, it is one worth taking.