Opportunity for Euro absentees in Italy rematch

Hodgson and his players made their final journey out of Krakow yesterday afternoon following their elimination from Euro 2012.

The pain was still etched in their faces as they came to terms with yet another penalty shoot-out defeat for the nation, this time to Italy, even if there was also an acceptance victory would have been undeserved.

After a whirlwind start to his England career, Hodgson does not have much time to relax.

First he will head to Brazil on a fact-finding mission ahead of the 2014 World Cup, then he will be keeping a close eye on the younger players named in Stuart Pearce’s squad for this summer’s Olympics.

And, before the closing ceremony at London 2012, Hodgson will have named a squad for the friendly with Sunday’s opponents, which is being played in Bern because Wembley is unavailable.

Asked whether the future direction of his side involved revolution or evolution, Hodgson confirmed that in August, at least, the former will apply.

“You will definitely see some revolution there because that game is going to be the ideal opportunity for me to look at some players who weren’t with us here and maybe feel they should have been,” he said.

“I want to see if they can add to the quality of our team.”

Hodgson will be wanting to check on the fitness of Kyle Walker, Chris Smalling and Jack Wilshere for definite.

Midfield duo Jack Rodwell and Tom Cleverley may also come into the frame, while it is possible those who had only limited game-time this summer, such as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Jordan Henderson, or none at all like Phil Jones and Martin Kelly, will be offered an opportunity to impress.

In addition, Adam Johnson and Daniel Sturridge were on Hodgson’s standby list for Poland and Ukraine, while Norwich goalkeeper John Ruddy, who has just signed a four-year contract with the Canaries, was forced to pull out after breaking a finger on the first day of training.

Hodgson’s priority will be to get a working knowledge of as many players as possible before he names his squad for the opening World Cup qualifiers, in Moldova on September 7 and Euro 2012 foes Ukraine at Wembley four days later.

“By the time we get to those qualifiers I will have to mix together what I’ve seen of the players who were here and what I’ve seen of the other players from the Premier League,” he said.

“At all costs, we have to retain the two elements this tournament has given us, our defensive discipline, organisation and teamwork and the desire to be part of an England team, to really go the extra mile to be able to wear the shirt.

“The next question is then can we improve the quality within our team. That’s something we’ll have to work at. I’m rather hoping one or two players will knock so hard on my door that they prove to be the right ones.”

Captain Steven Gerrard has already declared his intention to continue his international career for another two years and Hodgson is not expecting Chelsea duo Ashley Cole and John Terry to turn their backs either.

The situation with Terry is clearly more complicated as he must face a court case on July 9 to defend himself against a racially-aggravated public order offence, something the defender strenuously denies.

Terry was outstanding against Italy and Hodgson expects both the Chelsea captain, and Cole, just two caps short of his century but devastated to miss a vital penalty in the shoot-out, to make themselves available next term.

“I’d certainly be very disappointed if they weren’t (available),” said Hodgson.

“They’ve given me every reason to believe they’re very anxious to continue.

“They were two of the real success stories of the tournament.

“I’ve not even thought of asking whether they will continue.

“They could knock me over with a feather if they came to me and said ‘I’m not’.”

Gerrard cannot explain why England exhibited such a miserable ability to retain possession during quarter-final defeat to Italy.

Hodgson’s starting line-up in Kiev contained eight players who have won either the Premier League, Champions League or both.

For players of such talent, they showed a startling inability to keep the ball.

Restricted to a meagre 36 per cent possession over the 120 minutes, England were shoddy when they had it.

James Milner successfully found a team-mate with only just over half his attempts and, according to UEFA, goalkeeper Joe Hart was their most prolific passer.

“I don’t know,” said Gerrard when asked what went wrong.

“It’s a difficult question to answer and I am sure it’s one of the biggest points of this tournament that the management and coaching staff will have to look into.

“Keeping the ball – especially at this level – is fundamental. It’s key if you want to beat the big teams in these tournaments.

“You work so hard without it your opponent ends up running you into the ground and creating chances.

“Football’s a mad game at times. If we had won the penalty shoot-out we would have been through to the last four.

“I don’t look at stats too much unless it’s clear time and time again that something’s sticking out so obviously.

“In this tournament we have come up short as far as possession is concerned.”