Roy Hodgson unveils England Euros master plan to avoid another major championship failure

Roy Hodgson has guided England to Euro 2016 automatic qualification

IF England stuck to the prescribed script in registering 10 straight victories en route to Euro 2016, Roy Hodgson will now hope to rip it up completely.

 

There are easier ways of preparing for a tournament than friendly games against reigning European champions Spain and hosts France next month before confronting World Cup winners Germany in March.

Even next year's date with a Dutch side seemingly in disarray will serve as a neat barometer of what to expect when the tournament begins in earnest.

While the calibre of such opponents acts as an antidote to the apathy that engulfed a mundane qualifying campaign which ended with a routine 3-0 victory over Lithuania on Monday, the risk is clear for Hodgson.

England struggle against A-list (and B) opposition as a record of eight wins from 23 games since November 2008 suggests. Four of those victories have been against Belgium, Sweden (twice) and Croatia.

Ensuring the looming schedule remains an opportunity, rather than becoming an ordeal, is crucial for a manager not only aware his contract is up next summer but that his hopes of remaining in the job rest on his team being confident in their ability to fire in the championships.

"If you want to guarantee momentum, you don't play Spain away, you don't play France and you don't play Germany away," said the England coach.

"You play teams you feel you are quite capable of beating and then you get a pat on the back. We don't want that. I don't see it as a risk at all.

"The worst that can happen is we lose the games. The very worst that can happen is we lose them playing very badly and if that was to happen - and I don't believe it will - but if that was to happen, it would be an important lesson for us and provide us with important things to know going forward."

What the cakewalk through Group E has done is afford Hodgson the luxury of picking his strongest available side in Alicante on November 13.

Qualifying after seven games means he has been able to placate Premier League managers during this get-together in order to ensure there is no horse trading next month.

Joe Hart, Gary Cahill and James Milner were sent home after Estonia, while Chris Smalling and Raheem Sterling were informed before the Lithuania game they would play no part.

Had hopes of reaching the France been on a knife-edge, Wayne Rooney would not have been absent either.

When England's qualifying campaign for the World Cup in Brazil went to the wire, Hodgson used the friendlies with Chile and Germany two years ago to experiment. Both were lost and the feel-good factor quickly dissipated.

England will face David Silva's Spain and Paul Pogba's France in preparation for Euro 2016

"He'll probably play his strongest team and if not, then pretty close to it in both games," said Phil Jagielka, who captained England in Vilnius.

"That should give you a good idea of how he is looking at these friendlies and how we go about it. I think the Chile and Germany games, he went half-and-half on the Friday and Tuesday nights, probably trying to appease club managers, looking after players and things like that.

"Maybe this time the manager is going to be a little bit more selfish now and plan for France (next summer)."

It is true Hodgson has learnt his lesson, though there remains quite a distinction between his strongest available side and what he thinks his best team is.

Jack Wilshere and Danny Welbeck will not be fit, for example, and it remains to be seen whether the timing of Jordan Henderson's comeback means he can return to the international fold.

That England forever feels like an ongoing experiment is not solely Hodgson's fault, but he does now need to bed down in certain areas such as personnel, shape and approach starting against the Spanish.

Can he find a formula where Daniel Sturridge, who should be back, and Wayne Rooney can play in their best positions? Is there a system whereby Sturridge, Rooney, Ross Barkley and Raheem Sterling all feature without England being too open?

Will Michael Carrick be able to play two games in four days? Will he be able to play at all? Is John Stones the long-term partner for Smalling given Gary Cahill's club form at Chelsea?

 

"It's difficult," said Jagielka. "If we don't look to pick strong teams then the friendlies are pointless. If we pick strong teams, then we probably put ourselves under a bit of pressure.

"But we need to go out and play well and see how the formula and gameplans we have been putting together during this qualifying campaign stacks up against the so-called better teams of Europe.

"Hopefully we play well in those games and it gives us a bit more confidence looking forward to boarding the plane to France."

The alternative does not bear thinking about for Hodgson.