ROY’S THE BOY FOR ENGLAND FANS
FANS SUPPORT HODGSON ON BIG EURO 2012 DECISIONS
Roy Hodgson’s appointment as England manager has been the subject of much debate with media labelling Harry Redknapp as the “people’s choice”. However, a new survey of over 2,000 football fans by online bookmaker 888sport.com has revealed overwhelming support for the former WBA and Liverpool manager.
Fans believe Hodgson was the right man for the job and they also agree with the key decisions made by the England manager in the build up to Euro 2012. The 888sport.com Euro 2012 Fan Survey reveals:
- 57% of England fans agree with The FA’s decision to appoint Hodgson
- 73% would NOT have been happy if Harry Redknapp had been offered the role
- 65% of fans agree Hodgson was RIGHT to omit Rio Ferdinand from the squad
- 77% support the appointment of Gary Neville to the England coaching staff
- 52% named Steven Gerrard as their first choice skipper – ahead of Parker (23%)
- Andy Carroll is the fans choice (44%) to lead the line in Rooney’s absence
However, as past England managers will testify, it’s impossible to please all of the fans all of the time. The research, conducted by The Football Fan Census on behalf of 888sport.com identifies a couple of bones of contention in Roy’s squad selection:
- Stewart Downing (30% of vote) is the least deserving of a place in the squad
- Micah Richards (25%) is the player supporters would most like to see in the 23
46 YEARS OF HURT…AND COUNTING
The survey was conducted to coincide with 888sport.com’s new free to enter ‘Winning Streak’ score predictor, which gives fans the chance to win £888,888 for correctly guessing the result of every match in the tournament. Further guaranteed prizes worth £1,000s are available for the most prolific pundits and the research indicates some pragmatic predictions may be necessary for England’s opening fixtures. According to the survey, fans believe that:
- England will play out 1-1 draws in first two games against France and Sweden
- England will scrape through their group thanks to a 2-0 victory over Ukraine
- England will falter at the Quarter-Final stage (again!)
59% of fans expect England to repeat their Euro 2004 performance and exit at the Quarter-Final stage while only 5% believe they can go all the way to the Final.
How far will England progress in Euro 2012?
Quarter finals – 59.41%
Group stages – 21.41%
Semi finals – 14.37%
Final – 4.82%
Only a patriotic 4.36% of the England faithful believe Hodgson’s men will emerge victorious in Poland and Ukraine while Spain are unsurprisingly the fans’ favourite to lift the trophy (37%). A begrudging 36% of England supporters are tipping Germany to go all the way in the tournament.
Who will win Euro 2012?
Spain – 36.77%
Germany – 35.84%
Holland – 14.76%
England – 4.36%
France – 3.16%
If England bow out in the knockout stages, it will come as no surprise to fans if it comes via the dreaded penalty shootout. 66% of those surveyed believe the Three Lions will again falter if confronted by spot kicks. Furthermore, should that crucial moment occur, the man supporters would most trust to step up from 12 yards is now missing from the 23 man squad. Chelsea’s Frank Lampard (37%) was supporters’ first choice in the event of pivotal penalty but the midfielder has now been forced to withdraw through injury.
There was more bad news for England fans after the recent friendly against Belgium with Chelsea’s Gary Cahill forced to withdraw due to injury. Cahill and club team mate Terry were the first choice centre back pairing for fans with 40% of the vote. However, Hodgson will now need to rely on Manchester City’s Joleon Lescott alongside Terry, a pairing backed by just 12% of England fans.
BACK WAYNE IN UKRAINE
Wayne Rooney may be missing England’s opening two fixtures through suspension but England fans still see him as the side’s biggest goal threat. 24% of supporters back the United striker to finish as England’s top tournament goal scorer with Andy Carroll (15%) seen as the next best hope of finding the net on a regular basis.
Who will finish as England’s top scorer?
Wayne Rooney – 23.80%
Andy Carroll – 14.96%
Jermain Defoe – 14.49%
Steven Gerrard – 12.04%
Danny Welbeck – 11.57%
However, when it comes to a goal threats, there’s nobody more potent than Robin van Persie and fans believe his rich vein of form will continue at Euro 2012. 34% of those surveyed believe the Arsenal man will top the tournament scoring charts while, surprisingly, Cristiano Ronaldo is lagging behind with only 12% of the vote.
Who will finish as Euro 2012 top scorer?
Robin van Persie – 33.8%
Cristiano Ronaldo – 12.72%
Mario Gomez – 8.36%
Miroslav Klose – 8.36%
Lukas Podolski – 6.87%
CLUB V COUNTRY
The ‘Club versus Country’ debate is one that dominates the back pages with players and managers often criticised for favouring their club side over the national team. However, it seems fans are equally culpable with 81% admitting they’d rather see their club team win a major trophy or achieve promotion than cheer England to victory at Euro 2012.
Despite fans prioritising club over country, employers might want to brace themselves for a depleted workforce on Monday 11th June when England take on France in the early 5pm kick-off. 41% of supporters admit they’d be prepared to skive off work to watch a crucial England match.
Matt Le Tissier, an ambassador for 888sport.com, believes the research provides Hodgson’s men with a much-needed boost before heading out to Poland and Ukraine. The Saints legend said “As a player and a manager, it’s great is to know you have the support of your fans so it’s really encouraging for Roy and England that the results show such positive feeling towards the new set up. Harry Redknapp was touted as the ‘fans favourite’ but the 888sport.com fan survey shows that the fans think the right man got the job.”
Ed Nicholson, Spokesperson for 888sport.com, added: “England fans might not be overly optimistic about England’s chances of victory but the predictions could provide some valuable betting insight for punters throughout the tournament. We have £888,888 on offer with our Euro 2012 ‘Winning Streak’ predictor game so the findings could be well worth a look!”
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