Hodgson must be prepared to revolutionise
England's poor display on Wednesday at Wembley versus the Republic of Ireland only heightened the clamour for a new style of football to be introduced by the country that gave the game to the world.
With the national team jetting off to face Brazil in the Maracana this weekend to mark the 150th anniversary of the Football Association, now seems an ideal time to reflect on the progression, or lack there of, that England have managed under Roy Hodgson since his appointment shortly before Euro 2012.
In just over a year in charge, Hodgson has overseen a mixed bag of results and performances from the national side under his instruction. There's been some high points, such as the friendly win at home to this Sunday's opponents Brazil, with some bitter blows along the way including the draw with World Cup qualifying group rivals Montenegro and the penalty loss to Italy at the European Championships, after an embarrassingly one-sided affair.
The clash with Ireland proved once and for all that England must dispense with the rigid 4-4-2 system for good. The best teams, in fact most teams these days, know precisely how to combat a side that lines up with two banks of four and displays little or no dynamism in or out of possession. When Hodgson has been a little more adventurous tactically with three forwards or five in the middle of the park, England have looked a darn sight better and much more able to express themselves without being overrun in midfield. The archaic 4-4-2 formation that offers no flexibility must be banished, with much more emphasis placed on ball retention and an attacking outlook instead.
I still can't quite get my head around the notion that English players can't adapt, aren't able to hold the ball, or are wholly incapable of controlling games against quality opposition. This strange mindset has been forced on this nation's players by the media and public perception and national coaches that can't put their inhibitions to one side so that their charges can go out and display their technical ability on the highest stage.
The level of players that England have been blessed with over the last 10 years or so should have been good enough to lead the country much closer to glory. But instead, constant failures at quarter-final stages of various tournaments have scuppered any chance of major trophy-winning success.
We could go on all night debating the years of coaching that has focused on work ethic and hard running over technical ability, when that should have been the first thing on the list to teach kids coming through the ranks. Besides all of that, surely footballers of the ilk of Gerrard, Ashley Cole, Rio Ferdinand, Lampard and Wayne Rooney should have been a match for any opponent in the world. Those types of players need to be given licence to express themselves, encouraged to try different things and instructed to keep moving both in and out of possession. Sitting in a rigid bank of four with only a lanky forward to aim at may have been the acceptable way to play donkey's years ago, but something has to change radically and quickly.
The 'golden era' when the players I've just named were all in their prime has gone by with a whimper; now has to be the time when the national coach Hodgson grants his current crop the opportunity to play an entertaining brand of football and sticks to those principles through thick and thin.
Of course, coaching has improved dramatically at youth levels in recent times, but nobody can tell me that the top Premier League players of today, with all their vast experience domestically, in European club football and at international level, are unable to compete against other top nations while employing passing, enterprising football. I refuse to believe that footballers at the top of their game in the Premier League can't transfer that form to the international stage.
So, starting right now, Hodgson must plant the seed in the minds of his squad that they can play football on the deck, pass to each other without losing possession, and create numerous chances for the forward players to get on the scoresheet through cunning, skilful, attack-minded play.
Don't tell me that these footballers on massive wages, who produce each week in what is still the world's best league, aren't able to do it on the international front. It takes both a swift change in mentality and the ability of the national coach to simply instil some confidence in the players he chooses to represent the nation for success to then follow.
This country gave the world the greatest gift they could have received 150 years ago with the handing over of what is now the most-loved sport on this Earth. Maybe it's about time the Three Lions took back their place at the top of the football tree after all of these years.
Twitter: @davewh1980
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