ROY RODE BACK TO FOOTBALL ON SHEILA’S WHEELS

ROY HODGSON has revealed his wife Sheila backed him to return to football at Crystal Palace as he made a passionate defence of his managerial record. The former England boss spent the FA Cup third-round weekend last year skiing in Switzerland. But Hodgson, now 70, will take Palace to Brighton for a third-round grudge match after joining his boyhood club in September. And the well-travelled Eagles boss, who has coached four national sides, said he was urged to take his 16th club job by his other half (right) to get him out of the house. “We’ve been married 46 years,” Hodgson said. “There have been moments when we have discussed retirement together, mainly because she’s made a lot of sacrifices so I could be a football manager.

“It’s given us both a good life but there have been moments when we’ve thought: ‘Well, is this the time to do something else?’ Well, we tried that for a year and she came to the conclusion that she better let me back in for a little bit longer.”

The ex-Liverpool coach insisted he had nothing to prove after England’s humiliating failure at Euro 2016. And he bridled at the question of whether Palace’s recent performances had reaffirmed his belief that he was a good manager. “I’ve been working for 41 years,” he snapped. “I’ve got so many titles. I’ve taken two unfancied teams to European finals and you expect me to answer the question: ‘Do you now think you are a good manager?’ Just because I don’t boast of my achievements every day whenever I come into a press conference doesn’t mean to say I have ever thought anything other than I am a very good football manager.” Hodgson promised to field a strong side tonight despite recent injuries. “I think you will be surprised by the quality of the side we will put out,” he said. He welcomed the introduction of VAR (video assistant referee) for this evening but warned: “There will be some teething problems.”