SICKNESS!
used to happen, but football is changing.
‘And I know the statistics, we did draw against Montenegro, we did lose to Croatia and draw with Ukraine, but I still think the record at Wembley is pretty good. We can remain confident of playing at home.’
That is not always how Capello saw it. He thought England suffered an inferiority complex, particularly at Wembley and came to the conclusion very early in his tenure that he preferred away games. Hodgson has only played two competitive matches in London, a joke fixture against San Marino, and the more stringent examination presented by Ukraine, which England failed. The manager is beginning to experience the fragility that can strike English players at any time.
Capello’s team sailed towards South Africa in 2010 as one of the strongest European contenders, only to be affected by torpor once there. England battled their way out of a difficult group in Ukraine this summer, only to freeze against Italy in the quarter-finals.
And what happened to the Sven Goran Eriksson team that beat Germany 5-1 in Munich? They were stumbling and on the plane home from the World Cup in 2002 long before Germany reached the final.
‘The one thing we know is that, in Warsaw, we will face a very highly motivated team with a very vocal and enthusiastic support, because we are a scalp,’ Hodgson said. ‘England have always been a scalp.
‘We watched games about San Marino and, in those matches, their performance was nothing like it was at Wembley. They gave a bit to the game, rather than just being ultradefensive. Their respect was a flattering aspect, seeing them simply trying to keep the score down.
‘So we know that Poland will be rubbing their hands with glee at this game, given that, if they win, it’s such a feather in their cap. First, we have to make sure we’re not the victims.’
TO this end, Hodgson is leaning towards experience rather than the cavalier approach: Michael Carrick not Tom Cleverley, Jermain Defoe not Danny Welbeck.
Away wins may be easier to come by in international football these days, but Hodgson’s tendency to caution suggests he will attempt to snaffle one, rather than enter the refurbished National Stadium with guns blazing. That is his prerogative. What he cannot afford to do, however, is allow conservative leanings to result in a missed opportunity.
This is a Poland team without captain Jakub Blaszczykowski and ranked 54th in the world, marginally higher than the Bulgarians who England beat home and away en route to the 2012 European Championship. No England manager since Sir Alf Ramsey in 1973 has lost in Poland, either.
‘Historical moments don’t really interest me,’ said Hodgson. ‘I don’t dismiss history, knowledge of it gives you some perspective: but it doesn’t help you win a football match.’
He must hope he locates what does in Warsaw tonight; otherwise the road could get rather dicey from here. Even that familiar road home.
m.samuel@dailymail.co.uk