Hodgson departs with an ever-lasting legacy

Crystal Palace legend Roy Hodgson has had his second spell as Eagles boss cut short after a disappointing period at the club that saw his side win just two league games in their last thirteen, culminating in a stoppage-time defeat to Chelsea.

Hodgson, who announced his departure from the club on Monday afternoon, showed his class in an excellently worded statement: “I understand, given recent circumstances, it may be prudent at this time for the club to plan ahead, and therefore I have taken the decision to step aside so that the club can bring forward their plans for a new manager, as intended for this summer.”

He later added, “I am confident that the season will finish well, and I wish the team every success in the weeks, months, and seasons to come.”

Club chairman Steve Parish put on record his thanks to Hodgson: “Roy has a special place in Crystal Palace history, and this will never be forgotten. After four years in which he led the club to maintaining Premier League status season after season, he once again joined us nearly a year ago to steady the ship and worked wonders. That he then agreed to continue in the summer speaks volumes about his commitment to our club. Quite simply, we owe our continued Premier League status to Roy.

I would like to thank Roy enormously for his service and wish him the very best for the future; it’s fair to say Roy has the keys to Selhurst Park and will always be welcomed back.” 

The veteran boss came under countless scrutiny during his second spell with the South London club, with many suggesting that any legacy that he may have had has been killed through this time at the club. However, perspective is key.

Hodgson is quite clearly a Crystal Palace legend; he comfortably kept the club in the Premier League throughout his first spell with minimal resources, minimal backing, and a squad that was often sub-standard.

Hodgson always worked with what he was given. Never kicked up a fuss and kept Palace in the division comfortably every year. Yes, it wasn’t pretty at times, but he always got the task at hand done. For that remarkable achievement, his legacy is already solidified in Palace history as one of the greatest bosses the club has ever seen.

Of course, Hodgson has attracted criticism this season for his tactics, decision-making, and press conference antics, and in some people’s minds, his legacy may have been tarnished. But, upon reflection, his impact on the club, South London, and football as a whole cannot be denied. 

The saviour 

Hodgson joined Crystal Palace on September 12th, 2017, after Palace had sacked Frank de Boer, as the Dutchman lost his first four league matches without his side scoring a goal. They turned to Hodgson as a figure of stability, hoping he’d be able to guide them away from the bottom of the table and restore ‘safe’ football that would be capable of keeping the Eagles in the division. 

Things didn’t start too brightly for Hodgson’s Palace side, with a loss to Southampton in his opening game and two thrashings in Manchester by City and United, respectively. However, after the worst start to a Premier League season, losing seven matches in a row, Palace found their first league win, a 2-1 home win against City rivals Chelsea, with Wilfried Zaha being the first Palace player to net for the Eagles in the 2017/18 campaign. 

Things continued to be turbulent for Hodgson’s Palace side, with defeats to Newcastle and Tottenham and draws with West Ham and Everton in the four games that followed Chelsea. 

But Palace had finally changed their fortunes as Stoke travelled to Selhurst Park at the end of November. Stoke took the lead after 53 minutes through Xherdan Shaqiri, but just three minutes later, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who went on to have a fantastic season under Hodgson, brought Palace back level before Mamadou Sakho won the game for the Eagles in stoppage time. Palace still sat at the bottom of the Premier League but had cut the gap to safety down to three points.

The win against Stoke began an impressive run of form for the South London club as they went seven games unbeaten as Hodgson had seemed to finally crack the code and Palace climbed out of the relegation zone, sitting 16th in the Premier League with eighteen points after nineteen games. 

After early scares, Palace were having an okay season; they were in a relegation fight but consistently picking up good results and putting in solid performances, which were keeping them ahead of their relegation rivals. 

As the run-in approached, the hunt was on. Palace sat in the bottom three, with eight games to go but just a point behind relegation rivals Southampton. The next eight games were huge for Roy Hodgson and his Palace side. 

Huddersfield was first up in the run-in for the Eagles. A freezing cold, snowy day at the John Smith’s Stadium saw Crystal Palace take all three points in sub-zero temperatures as James Tomkins and Luka Milivojević scored vital goals in Palace’s race for survival. Palace had climbed out of the relegation zone. 

Next up was Liverpool; Palace narrowly lost but crucially remained outside of the drop zone on thirty points. 

The final six games of the season for Palace were nothing short of magical; all of a sudden they were playing excellent football, getting results every week, and finished that final period of the campaign unbeaten, with a 5-0 win over Leicester and a 3-2 win over Brighton being the key highlights. Palace finished the season eleventh with forty-four points, being the first team to stay in the division after starting the campaign with seven consecutive defeats. 

Hodgson had an impressive campaign, saving Palace from inevitable relegation. He did an outstanding job and created a sense of excitement going into the next Premier League season. 

A figure of stability

From the 2018–19 season through the 2019–20 season, Palace enjoyed a period of calmness and stability. Hodgson was the man who could be trusted to keep Palace in the top flight while having minimal resources, which has allowed the club to build a sustainable model that exists now. 

However, things did not start wonderfully for Hodgson’s side in the 2018–19 campaign. The Eagles defeated Fulham on the opening day of the season before having to wait until December 1st for their next win. But, from that point on, Palace began to kick on with emphatic wins over Leicester, Wolves, and Arsenal. Palace went into the last six games all but safe with 36 points, sitting 13th in the Premier League. The end of that campaign was one with no stress for Palace fans; there was a feel-good factor around the club, and everyone enjoyed themselves. The last six games saw wins against Arsenal, Newcastle, and Cardiff, a draw with Everton, a narrow loss to Manchester City, and a final day 5-3 thriller at home to Bournemouth. 

Palace finished the season eleventh on 49 points, matching Palace’s record top-flight finish. 

The following season, Palace enjoyed an excellent campaign, sitting eleventh on 39 points after 29 games, with another season of Premier League football secured with nine games to spare. However, the COVID pandemic put a stop to Palace’s track, with football suspended for the foreseeable future while the country was thrown into a frenzy. 

Palace fans could get through the lockdown knowing that no matter what happened, whether or not the league was curtailed or continued at a later date, they’d be playing Premier League football again. However, there was an eagerness from fans of the South London club for football to start again, with Palace sitting just 4 points outside of the European places.

Once football returned, behind closed doors on June 20th, Palace played the first top-flight game broadcast on free-to-air national television since 1988. Palace came out 2-0 winners, with two goals from corners against the Cherries, which saw Palace climb to ninth, just two points away from the Europa League spots, with Europe seemingly a possibility for Palace. 

However, the hope of Europe quickly faded as Palace failed to win seven consecutive games. There was not much riding on the final game of the season for Hodgson’s side, who hosted Tottenham, who needed at least a point to qualify for Europe. Spurs took an early lead, but Jeffery Schlupp rescued a point for Palace, who finished the campaign with 43 points, finishing fourteenth in the Premier League. 

This period under Hodgson represented stability, comfortably staying in the Premier League throughout his tenure, rarely looking over their shoulders, and having a lot of fun along the way. Palace enjoyed notable high points, including a last-minute winner at Old Trafford, and of course, not forgetting a memorable afternoon just before Christmas at the Etihad when Andros Townsend scored a Puskás-nominated goal, securing Palace all three points against the Champions. 

Pandemic stagnancy

The 2020–21 season, which transpired to be the last of Hodgson’s first spell at the club, was stagnant, with Palace fans feeling that they weren’t kicking on, and there was a clear consensus that ambition needed to be shown the following season with a new coach and new ideas. 

The majority of Palace’s games in that campaign were played behind closed doors, with fans forced to watch from home. It was an up-and-down season for Palace, but as always with Hodgson, there was never really any threat of the Eagles going down. 

Notable high points include a brilliant 3-1 win away at Old Trafford, a 4-1 trashing of Leeds, a 5-1 battering of West Brom, and a thrilling 3-2 win over Aston Villa. And of course, a 2-1 smash-and-grab win away to rivals Brighton, which saw Jean-Phillipe Mateta install himself as a cult hero.

However, the lows were rough for Palace fans, with an exhausting 7-0 defeat at the hands of Hodgson’s former club, Liverpool, and an embarrassing 3-0 home defeat to Burnley. 

The end of the campaign signalled the end of an era at Palace, with Hodgson announcing that the 2020–21 season would be his last at the club. 

Palace’s penultimate game of the season was at Selhurst as the Eagles hosted Arsenal. Fortunately, fans were allowed in that day. An emotional evening saw Palace defeated 3-1 at Selhurst, but nobody really cared about the result. The few thousands in attendance were there for one reason and one reason only: to thank Roy, the man who had given so much to the football club. 

One last hoorah 

After Hodgson departed the club, Patrick Vieira took the reigns for the Eagles; however, in his second season, things went sour with Palace sacking the Frenchman after 28 games, which he had taken 28 points from, but performances had been underwhelming, with an embarrassing defeat to rivals Brighton being the final nail in the coffin for Vieira. 

Palace turned to that figure of stability, the man who will always keep you in the Premier League, Roy Hodgson, for the final ten games of the campaign. Hodgson rejuvenated a Palace squad that had lost its way; he enabled the squad to play with freedom, play attacking football, and make the final weeks of the campaign extremely exciting for Palace fans. 

It all began with a 2-1 win over Leicester in a huge relegation clash, which saw Mateta score a stoppage time winner for the Eagles, securing all three points and taking Palace three points clear of the relegation zone. 

From that point on, Palace’s safety was never in doubt. But the style in which Hodgson secured safety was ridiculously impressive. A 5-1 win over Leeds, a 2-0 win against Southampton, and an astonishing 4-3 victory over West Ham brought so much elation to supporters, which had evaporated under Vieira. 

In the final ten games of the season, Palace only failed to pick up points on two occasions. Hodgson comfortably guided Palace to an eleventh-place finish. 

The decision was taken in the summer to give Hodgson another season at the club, and although it didn’t work out as everyone would have liked, the season still had its fair share of highs, with an amazing result up at Old Trafford (a ground where Roy had become a master at taking points from) and wins over Brentford and Wolves. 

There’s only one Roy Hodgson 

Hodgson will always be synonymous with Crystal Palace. A legend who Parish quite rightly described as “always having the keys to Selhurst Park.” He has been a constant figure of stability at the football club, keeping the club afloat and always securing Premier League status, which is worth its weight in gold. In the modern game, the words legacy and legend are branded around far too often, but with Roy Hodgson, there is no arguing around the impact he has made. There truly is only one Roy Hodgson, a legend of the game, a true gentleman, and a selfless figure to whom Crystal Palace owes so much.