Fulham’s Great Escape
He looked an unlikely hero when he pitched up at Fulham, Roy Hodgson. Decent coach and all that, but with a CV that wasn't exactly bursting with Premier League experience – other than a poor stint at Blackburn Rovers a few years back – hopes weren't high that Roy (or Woy) could make anything special happen. They're down, we all thought. And so it seemed.
But miracles can happen, even at crumbly old Craven Cottage. And after three wins in their last four matches, Fulham now stand on the brink of pulling off Mission Impossible – instead of a slightly shambolic, rather confused old gent who cannot pronounce his Rs properly (how could he have succeeded at Rovers if he kept saying Wovers?) Hodgson now resembles some kind of managerial mastermind. From a desperate and rather doomed situation, Fulham will avoid relegation on Sunday if they beat Portsmouth at Fratton Park. Or even if they draw the game and Reading and Birmingham fail to win their matches. Or even – even!- if they lose and Reading and Birmingham do the same.
Hodgson won't be the first manager to pull off a relegation-escaping performance against the odds, of course. But he'll be the first to do it with players like Eric Nevland, Kasey Keller and 37-year-old Jari Litmanen at the club. And for that, he should walk away with the Manager of the Year award.
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