HODDLE & INCE SOUTHGATE NEEDS TO PLAY WITHOUT FEAR
Ince and Hoddle recall that bloody night in Rome... and why it is still a high point for England 20 years on
GLENN HODDLE and Paul Ince, architects of England’s most i mpressive World Cup qualification, greet each other like old comrades 20 years after an epic night in Rome l eft t he captain bloodied and bandaged and his manager fearing he was having a heart attack.
Before the football chat, there is a not her i mportant matter to discuss. Hoddle is a big fan of crime drama Sneaky Pete but Ince watched a couple of episodes on the train journey to London and wasn’t impressed.
‘Stick with it,’ is the senior man’s advice after listening carefully to the concerns. ‘All right. I will do, gaffer,’ r epli es I nce, r espect undimmed by the passing of time.
Along with David Beckham, Paul Gascoigne and current England boss Gareth Southgate, the pair shared one of England’s greatest nights, going to the Stadio Olimpico on October 11, 1997 and delivering a tactical masterclass to Italy’s Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Del Piero and Gianfranco Zola in front of 80,000 hostile fans.
The 0-0 result not only secured England’s place at the 1998 World Cup finals, it created a sense of national optimism in stark contrast to last week’s qualification that fo l l o wed a l i mp win a gai nst Slovenia at Wembley.
Thousands of England fans inside the colosseum and millions back home could see a team able to match the world’s best with their heads as well as hearts.
Against a backdrop of crowd disturbances, Demetrio Albertini’s elbow cut Ince’s face and Angelo Di Livio was sent off for a lunge on Sol Campbell.
It also created the most dramatic final 60 seconds of any international, Ian Wright hitting the post before an Italian counter gave Christian Vieri a golden chance to deny England and leave them facing a hazardous play-off against Russia.
‘When Wrighty went through, I saw all the white shirts on the bench, the staff and the subs, going up to celebrate,’ says Hoddle.
‘He hits the post, Teddy takes a touch and doesn’t score and then for some reason we’re st retched and t hey’re breaking on us. It was down their left, in front of the dug- outs, and I felt like sticking my leg out to stop them.
‘They’ve got in behind, Del Piero’s crosses and as Vieri jumps, I’m waiting for it to hit the net. David Seaman hasn’t moved, he thinks we’re gone. You know when people talk about their heart jumping out of their chest. It happened to me at that moment. I felt my heart had leapt right out of my skin. I was drenched in sweat instantly, my head went dizzy, I thought I was having a heart attack — it was really frightening.
‘ My concern for the next 30 seconds was not to keel over and then the ref blows his whistle and I’m celebrating with everyone else. It’s amazing what football can do to you.’
Ince was the last man back and watched helplessly as Vieri headed towards goal... and fractionally wide. ‘I was panicking, praying. I r e member t hi nki ng, “Pl ea s e , please, if he scores this I’m never going to a World Cup.”
‘I hadn’t been picked for Italia 90 even though I’d had a good season for Manchester United, we hadn’t qualified for ’94 and I saw this as my last chance. When the ball goes past the post, I looked around, Wrighty is crying, the gaffer is all over the place. It’s like a war zone.’ A late Italian winner would have been unjust. England had hardly given their hosts a sniff and were in full control thanks to a 3-5-2 with Beckham as right wing-back. Hoddle had been able to pick the core of Terry Venables’s Euro 96 heroes plus an emerging Beckham and fit-again Graeme Le Saux. The one absentee was injured captain Alan Shearer, so Ian Wright came in and his roommate Ince wore the armband. ‘Me and Wright were mucking ab o u t wh e n the gaffer knocked on our door,’ said Ince. ‘It was like the headmaster coming to see you. What does he want? Is he going to say I’m not playing? ‘ He said he was going to make me captain. I played it cool, got back to Wrighty and we went mad, jumping and hugging. It was even better t hat Wrighty t hought he was starting as well. He’d been put up top in training but kept losing the ball. The gaffer was shouting: “Oi, keep hold of it.” Normally Wrighty would have been effing and blinding but because he had a chance to play, all he said was: “Yes gaffer”!’
Having been made skipper, Ince was near l y forced off after Albertini caught him in an aerial challenge. He was off the pitch for eight minutes to have stitches.
‘Any other player and I’d have made the change,’ said Hoddle. ‘We were down to 10 men for what felt like ages and you can imagine if Italy had scored then. I would have been hammered.
‘But Incey was the hub of that midfield. I knew it was a long walk down the steps into the tunnel and all th e wa y bu t wh e n five minutes passed, six minutes, I was constantly glancing across to see where Incey was.
‘If it had gone to 10 minutes I might have had to make the change. Apparently the Italians said they couldn’t find the right key!’
In the bowels of the stadium, Ince recalls: ‘I was having a go at the doctor to hurry up. The longer it went, I was worried I’d get back out and the gaffer would say “Sit next to me, I’ve just put Nicky Butt on”. The fact he didn’t shows how important I was!’
Ince was spotted instantly as he re- emerged with a giant white bandage covering his head.
Gazza sprinted to the touchline to say he looked like ‘a pint of Guinness’ and the laughter from the England bench and nearby players seemed to unnerve Italy, who couldn’t beli eve t he relaxed behaviour.
‘ I ’ m sure t heir bench looked at us and said “Crazy English, we aren’t going to beat them today”,’ said Hoddle.
The success was also down to meticulous preparation. They spent a few days in Rome to acclimatise and Gazza’s connections helped t hem s ecure Lazio’s t r ai ni ng ground. ‘It was the only squad I picked where there were no pullouts,’ said Hoddle. The feelgood preparation extended to FA chief executive Graham Kelly, who scored four goals in a staff match in which Hoddle played. ‘ Graham walked off with the match ball under his arm and made us all sign it,’ he said with a laugh. Training was focused and Tony Adams was shown videos of Italy’s defenders in their 1-0 win at Wembley earlier in the campaign. ‘ I remember telling Tony to come deep so the game was in front of him,’ said Hoddle. ‘Give Tony time on the ball and he could use it, pick people out. He’d been brought up at Arsenal under George Graham, always squeezing up. But I’d played for England in a 4-4-2 era when centre-halves would launch the ball up to the strikers. I wanted to create angles to move the ball through the pitch. ‘It wasn’t so much about a back three as having five in midfield so we weren’t outnumbered. As manager, I was determined my players wouldn’t chase shadows like I’d done.
‘We worked on the team for three days non-stop. Teddy and Gazza behind Wrighty, with Teddy dropping back more than normal. We had players who were comfortable on the ball. Gazza had confidence to know if he passed, other players would keep it.’
Ince concurs. ‘ In Rome, Gazza would use his skills to get out of trouble but then pop it off. He didn’t go on mazy runs.
‘We had a gameplan. It was really good stuff, one and two touch, in that cauldron. It was the most emotional I’ve ever seen the gaffer. I’ve still got the shirt and armband from that night, blood and all.’
The big question is why England didn’t build on the legacy of Rome. At the World Cup the following year, their dream was shattered by Argentina in the last 16 after another momentous game.
‘ I looked around the dressing room before the tournament and thought we could win the World Cup,’ said Ince.
‘I’d planned for seven games, the hotels, training,’ said Hoddle. ‘We had Owen, Beckham, Scholes and Rio Ferdinand added to the Euro 96 group. I was excited about the next two or three tournaments as well.’
But Hoddle was gone by 1999, for non-football reasons that have been well documented. The less tactic ally sophisticated Kevin Keegan presided over a disaster at Euro 2000 and England returned to 4-4-2, ironically under an overseas coach in Sven Goran Eriksson.
‘The gaffer was ahead of the game and we lost our way after that,’ said Ince. ‘I played in Euro 2000 and saw things change. I don’t think we’ve got back.’
Hoddle admits he was fortunate to have inherited a strong squad in terms of mentality.
‘We had a group, and the bigger the game the more they liked it. They didn’t go into their shells and were able to take information on board. It was natural for them.
‘You could see with England at the last Euros, the fear that came in against Iceland. We have to get it out of our psyche.
‘Gareth was in our ’97 team and that’ll help, but only to a point. He’ll be on the bench in Russia, not on the pitch. The players need that character and belief in themselves and each other.’
Ince interjects: ‘We had 10 or 12 captains in our group. I’m not sure you can say that about England now. If it’s not there, it’s not there.
‘Euro 96 we should have won it, in 1998 we could have won it without Beckham [sent off]. Euro 2000 was a step back. Southy is trying to get it back but players have changed, times have changed.’
Lunch at the Royal Garden Hotel — where Alf Ramsey’s 1966 World Cup winners were based — is followed by an afternoon stroll in nearby Kensington Gardens.
So what about one final piece of advice for Southgate in Russia?
‘Have a belief in himself,’ said Ince. ‘When the gaffer took over he knew what he wanted to do. What he wanted to be successful. Clarity.’
Hoddle: ‘You can’t play any sport if you’re too uptight. Eradicate the fear.’