‘Big Roy’ fits the bill to give struggling Watford a chance of surviving

For Roy Hodgson, the “easy thing would have been to disappear off into retirement”. So said Dan Ashworth in February 2019, as he reflected on Hodgson’s failed tenure as the England manager, and the view of the Football Association’s former technical director would have found broad agreement.

Only not with Hodgson.

What happened with England remains the biggest stick with which to beat the 74-year-old, even if the Liverpool support might beg to differ. The quarter-final showing at Euro 2012, after Hodgson had been parachuted in at the last minute, was creditable but then came the group stage exit at the 2014 World Cup. And then came Iceland at Euro 2016.

Hodgson is not the sort of man for whom the easy option appeals. And nor is he the type to embrace retirement – even at this stage of his life.

It was why he jumped at the challenge to get back in at Crystal Palace in September 2017, despite the club he supported as a boy being in disarray – with no points and no goals from the opening four matches of the Premier League season.

It was why, when he departed at the end of last season, head held high after giving Palace the top-flight comfort they had craved for years, he refused to rule out another comeback. And it is why we are where we are, with Hodgson having signed at Watford, eager to throw himself into another highly daunting assignment.

The work has already begun