YOU COULD HAVE FOOLED US, ROY

ROY HODGSON has been talking about Ross Barkley. ‘If Ross can find a club where people believe in him as much as we did in the England set-up he will do well,’ he told an audience in China. This would be the belief that saw Hodgson take Barkley to the European Championship and not give him a single minute of game time, the only outfield player beside John Stones not to feature. Or maybe it was the belief that saw him start at the World Cup in 2014, but only once England were out of the tournament. If Barkley’s next club believe in him as much as that, he’s stuffed.