BROWN BACKS ROY TO BE A LEGEND:

Roy has had to fight his way through and gain respect. He’s done that

TOO cautious. The kind of guy who, dealt four aces and a wild-card joker, would refuse to up the ante. Just in case. Prone to a pig-headed pragmatism that would put the most plodding of pub bores to sleep.

If you believe all of the above about Roy Hodgson, well, that’s entirely understandable. The England manager has a public image unlikely to stir the blood of our most patriotic near neighbours.

And so he heads into this tournament with everybody from ball boys to World Cup winners urging him to play fast and loose. To throw two, three, four or more forwards into the melee — the younger, more fresh, the better — and go for broke. The defence isn’t much cop, goes the theory, so why not try to win every game 5-4?

Such white-noise background chatter is all part of a wider dissatisfaction, of course. Four years into his reign, there is a feeling among many England fans that Hodgson has run the same course covered by almost all of his predecessors, moving from promising to past-it with only a few bumps along the way.

At 68, he is variously portrayed as out of touch, out of time, under pressure and underwhelming in the art of motivating the young multimillionaires who know — or care — little about his long and distinguished coaching career.

Observers describe the mood in the England camp as either tense or downright defiant, with levels of secrecy — all part of an us-against-the-world mentality — making many wonder if Roy is fearful of the competition. Sound familiar? It should.

Ask one of Hodgson’s oldest friends in football and, surveying the situation from arm’s length, he draws parallels with the man who came closer than any to bagging England a major trophy on foreign soil.

Moreover, Craig Brown certainly wouldn’t discount the possibility of Hodgson’s England going one step further than the pre-knighthood Bobby Robson — by actually winning the European Championship.

Recalling the journey that saw Robson go from figure of fun to national treasure in one Italian summer, the former Scotland boss told Sportsmail: ‘Roy is in a similar situation to Bobby ahead of the World Cup in 1990.

‘He was getting pilloried — and he took them to a penalty shoot-out loss in the semi-final, against a West Germany team who won the Cup. I don’t know what England managers have to do to win respect.

‘Bobby got criticism as far back as Mexico in ’86. I was there with Alex Ferguson and I remember how the English media were going for him.

‘Bobby had a good playing reputation, too, something Roy doesn’t. I think people are a bit hypnotised by a good player who becomes a manager.

‘Roy has had to fight his way through and gain respect for his ability as a football manager. He’s done that.

‘He’s managed clubs all over Europe. Now, experience can be repeating the same mistake every time. But I think he’s learned something from every job — and he’s learned it at the highest level.’

Dismissing the notion that England’s group of young, wealthy and incredibly entitled footballers can’t possibly rally round someone so removed from their world, Brown somewhat surprisingly cites Hodgson’s status as the bestpaid coach at the European Championship as a crucial

bulwark against indifference or insolence.

‘I think players know that he’s as wealthy as they are,’ said the last man to lead Scotland to a major finals, back in 1998. ‘That’s the first thing that helps him.

‘Rinus Michels once gave a lecture talking about Dutch players. He said the only person who could manage the Dutch team was someone with a great playing reputation — or someone who was as wealthy as they are.

‘That applies now more than ever. If you are managing these millionaires, they have got to know that you’re not a pauper yourself.

‘One of the talks I give to coaches coming through their badges is called: “Managing millionaires”. Roy is clever, he knows how to do it. And he’s brilliant when it comes to the most difficult job at a tournament — dropping a player. He knows how to do it without making everybody unhappy.

‘He’s a decent guy, first of all. And has terrific experience, when you think of where he’s worked.

‘Of course, he’s far too old — he should have chucked it! No, I’m only kidding. I think his age is an asset, because he’s seen it all.’

Brown believes the bookies have called it just about right by putting England behind France, Germany and Spain in the betting. That gives them a chance, he believes, of upsetting hardly insurmountable odds.

But they will not do that in a way that pleases everyone. Because Hodgson clearly believes that it’s extremely dangerous to use English Premier League solutions to crack an international conundrum.

Sure, playing with pace, power and desire would probably get England out of their group. But better European sides know how to cope with — and exploit — this honest-but-limited approach.

While the absence of Jamie Vardy from the starting XI for tonight’s opener against Russia might annoy some, it’s actually a Ready to deliver: Roy Hodgson has the knowledge and experience to win a major trophy with England, according to former Scotland boss Craig Brown statement of intent. Pick him and you’re telling the opposition that the plan is to hold the line and then hit on the break. Dropping Vardy suggests an ambition to retain possession.

Brown thinks that Hodgson will take little offence from being branded cautious, undoubtedly drawing on his own eight years in charge of Scotland as he explained: ‘I think you’ve got to be… how can I put it? Careful. Because a lot of people want you to be reckless, really.

‘As an international manager, there are two things everybody — especially the media — want you to do.

‘First, they want you to play youngsters. Roy is doing that. Not because anyone is telling him to, but because he thinks they’re good enough.

‘Secondly, they want you to be cavalier. They want attack, attack, attack. If you win games narrowly, you are boring and not expansive enough in your play.

‘Now, I think he’s got the capability to do what is required. I think he’s very shrewd. But, to succeed with that England group, you have to be cautious.

‘So I think it’s a compliment if they call him cautious. I call it shrewd. The good international teams all have a superstar. Roy is prepared to eliminate the opponent’s star. If they were playing Sweden, he would have Zlatan (Ibrahimovic) covered. Not assaulted or kicked! No, just covered.

‘The best I ever knew at this job was Paul Lambert. Roy could do with someone like that, capable of eliminating the opponent’s star — like Gareth Bale.

‘When England play, the best player on the other side is covered. Not taken out of the game, but stopped from having an influence.

‘You eliminate players not only by man-marking but by intercepting, by covering the spaces. So he will cover for Bale in such a way that, if he beats one player, another will be there.

‘Roy is good at figuring these things out. I’ve worked on courses with Roy, I’ve heard him deliver talks. And, like I said, he’s very shrewd.’

Cautious, shrewd, keeps his cards close to his chest. How he plays the hand dealt him over the next few weeks will determine whether Hodgson ends the summer as a dejected figure or fun – or laughing at all those who dared him to carry on playing it safe.