It is not often I get riled, but if I hear the comment once more that Rio ‘was left out for footballing reasons’ I think I’m going to throw the laptop out of the window. I have never heard such drivel in my life and the recent call-ups has simply underlined what rubbish the reasons for Ferdinand’s omission actually were. Hodgson should man-up and tell us the truth, instead of continuing to insult our intelligence.
Jamie Moralee was roundly criticised by many within the game for his attack on the FA, Hodgson and alike; however his sentiments would have been felt by many. It is kind of baffling that an inexperienced Liverpool reserve would get the nod, and be deemed a better option than the most decorated defender currently in England. It is a joke in every sense of the word and only serves to prove why so many doubted his suitability for the job in the first place. Hodgson has decided to go with the putting of square pegs in round holes option with his squad and destroying England’s chances at the Euro’s with it.
The reasoning the likes of Sven have given in defence of Hodgson is that Rio has had injury problems this season and unlikely to play regularly, despite the fact he has played 38 games this year (a damn sight more than Kelly I might add). It is another pointless justification, given that Hodgson included Wayne Rooney who is ineligible for two games. The argument is that on a one-off game Rooney could make a huge difference is the right one; in much the same way that being able to call upon someone with the experience of Ferdinand would have been a useful weapon to have. Fabio Capello called up Ledley King for the last World Cup with such thinking in mind, but then again as managers go we are dealing with chalk and cheese here. Apparently Ferdinand has been told by Hodgson he still has an international future with the World Cup qualifiers in mind – an even more baffling comment, given how much this squad is battling with injuries at this moment in time.
Hodgson’s inconsistencies are frightening and judging by the performances of his team over the last two outings, a painful tournament awaits us.
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