Hodgson out to spoil Liverpool's top-four party in last game in charge
Roy Hodgson is out to spoil Liverpool’s top-four party as he looks to end with a bang on his Crystal Palace swansong… he was sacked after a dismal six months at Anfield 10 years ago but would love to haunt them on the season’s final day
- Roy Hodgson announced he will step down as Crystal Palace boss this summer
- The 73-year-old will bring the curtain down on his four-year stint at Selhurst Park
- His last game in charge comes against Liverpool at Anfield – his former club
- Jurgen Klopp’s men need to at least match Leicester’s result to finish fourth
- However, Hodgson will want to haunt the club that sacked him after six months
There will be no motivation needed for Crystal Palace when they play Liverpool at Anfield in their final game of the season on Sunday.
Not because a win will save them from the drop or anything like that. The Eagles have already secured Premier League football for another season.
But because it will be Roy Hodgson’s last-ever game as Palace manager.
The 73-year-old revealed on Tuesday that he would be stepping down from his post at the end of the season, announcing his decision before his side’s penultimate game against Arsenal.
Roy Hodgson’s final game in charge of Crystal Palace will be against his former club Liverpool
‘After more than 45 years of coaching I have decided that the time is right for me to step away from the rigours of top-flight Premier League football, so our final two matches will be my last ones as manager of Crystal Palace,’ Hodgson said when confirming his exit on Tuesday.
‘It’s been a particularly rewarding period of my football life and career to have been able to spend these last four seasons with Palace. I feel now that at the end of another successful season, in which we have secured our Premier League status, the moment is right for me to step down from my responsibilities of being a full-time manager.
‘I have had so much support from my wife and family throughout my career and I have been contemplating this decision for some time, and now I believe the time is right to consider them and to see what the future holds for me.’
Hodgson waved goodbye to Crystal Palace supporters after his final game at Selhurst Park
While it remains unclear whether Palace will be his last managerial role in football, the fact that he is ending his four-year stint with Palace at Anfield makes it all that more special for Hodgson.
Sunday’s game comes 10 years after Hodgson was sacked by Liverpool after just six months, where he won just seven of the 20 Premier League games he was in charge before he was swiftly replaced by Kenny Dalglish.
After landing one of English football’s top jobs, Hodgson’s short, but certainly not sweet, tenure at Liverpool was doomed from the start.
He was somewhat an unwanted manager who was appointed by loathed former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, who struggled to win over the Anfield faithful from the start.
Hodgson was appointed as Liverpool manager at the start of the 2010-11 campaign
He was an unwanted manager appointed by loathed ex-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett
Hodgson’s Reds were knocked out of the League Cup by League Two’s Northampton Town
Under his stewardship, Liverpool flirted with relegation, were knocked out of the League Cup by League Two’s Northampton Town and ended up on the losing side of a Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
Hodgson certainly didn’t help himself in the media, either, after hailing a scrapping win over Trabzonspor in the Europa League as ‘a famous European night’ while also refusing to defend Fernando Torres when Sir Alex Ferguson accused the Spaniard of feigning injury.
As his relationship with Liverpool supporters soured, Hodgson was shown the exit and was left to look back on his time on Merseyside as a failed venture.
While he may not hold any resentment towards his former employers, getting a win in front of 10,000 returning Liverpool supporters would be the happy swansong Hodgson will be dreaming of.
And there’s not just pride on the line, either.
He was sacked after just six months in charge and failed to win the Liverpool supporters over
Liverpool need to at least match Leicester’s result against Tottenham on Sunday to secure a top-four finish and a place in next season’s Champions League.
Failure to do so will be the final disappointment in a season that saw Liverpool’s title defence split at the seams.
The fact that Hodgson can haunt his former club on their own patch will be a huge motivation but, if history is anything to go by, it will prove to be an extremely difficult task.
Since he was sacked by the Reds in January 2011, Hodgson has managed just two wins in nine against the Reds, with both of those coming during his 15-month stint at West Brom.
He has lost every game against Liverpool as Palace boss.
Hodgson has lost all six games against Jurgen Klopp while in charge at Crystal Palace
Palace’s most-recent defeat against Liverpool was their 7-0 drubbing back in December
His most recent defeat will certainly be the one he’ll be most eager to avenge, with the Eagles ripped apart by Mohamed Salah and Co in their 7-0 drubbing before Christmas.
Hodgson’s last hurrah in denying Liverpool Champions League football while getting his first win against Klopp would be the ideal send off Palace fans want for one of their own.
Palace famously dealt Liverpool a severe blow in their aim to win their first Premier League title back in 2014, after the Reds squandered a three-goal lead to drop points in the title race with Man City.
But a repeat of those heroics will be cherished a whole lot more to send the Eagles boss out on a high come Sunday.
However, Hodgson will be looking to spoil Liverpool’s top-four party in his final game in charge
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