Simon Stone: Sure-footed manager shows he is no ‘cuddly Uncle Roy’

The immediate reaction when Roy Hodgson was appointed as Fabio Capello’s successor was one of surprise, basically because he was not Harry Redknapp.

That was quickly followed by acceptance. After all, at 64, Hodgson had put together a decent CV, for both club and country, and, with his calm nature, was generally viewed as a safe pair of hands who would go about his job with quiet diligence without rocking the boat.

So much for that theory.

In the space of a couple of hours, Hodgson has tossed those preconceptions overboard in the same disdainful manner that he abandoned England’s pre-tournament training camp in Spain.

This, it should be remembered, was the central part of plans put into place by interim manager Stuart Pearce, the bit he “tweaked” following Fabio Capello’s exit.

How ridiculous it appears now that, at the beginning of April, Pearce was still being viewed as a temporary coach, at the very least a likely part of the new man’s back-up team.

Seems Hodgson was not keen on that idea. He wanted Ray Lewington and Gary Neville instead, even to the extent of ignoring the latter man’s media commitments to Sky Sports and a Sunday newspaper, and the fact the former is already employed by Fulham.

On countless occasions, both Pearce and senior figures within the Football Association had spoken of how all plans were in place, it was just a question of slotting a coach on top.

It didn’t take long for Hodgson to work out the plans were a bit rubbish.

That, instead of hauling themselves off to Spain for a few days, England’s battle-weary players would be better off preparing for their friendly in Norway by spending extra time at home with their families.

Chances are, given the opportunity, Hodgson would also have concluded England’s boutique base in Krakow, pleasant though it undoubtedly is, was completely impractical for a team who could win the trophy without once playing in Poland.

England’s three group matches are in Donetsk and Kiev, so surely it would have been better to base themselves in the other co-host nation, even if life in the Ukraine is not always full of luxury.

So, Hodgson had already made some significant decisions even before the make-up of his squad started to leak out.

Axeing Rio Ferdinand is the obvious headline news, a move that effectively ends the 33-year-old’s international career and means he will never get to grace a European Championship.

Various conspiracy theories can be put forward but Hodgson appears to have acted on the sound principle of players needing to be fit to do themselves justice, no matter how much ability they have.

The absence of Micah Richards from the 23-man squad was another big call, especially as Kyle Walker was ruled out with a broken toe.

Yet a picture of Richards is starting to emerge of a player who cannot entirely be trusted defensively.

After all, when Roberto Mancini left him out of Manchester City’s key games at the end of the season, it wasn’t for a stellar name, like Sergio Aguero or Yaya Toure. It was for utility man Pablo Zabaleta, who duly scored the opening goal of that dramatic win over QPR.

And, while Glen Johnson has many critics outside of the confines of a training ground, the list of respected coaches who rate him as clearly the best right-back in the country is growing markedly.

In selecting Johnson’s Liverpool team-mate Andy Carroll, Hodgson has given a nod to recent form, at the same time relying largely on the players who steered England through an eight-match qualifying campaign – just as he promised.

Selecting Stewart Downing after a poor season at Liverpool has raised eyebrows but handing the skipper’s armband to Steven Gerrard is as many expected.

And there you have it.

Roy Hodgson, if not exactly a ruthless dictator, then secure enough in his own skin to make the big calls. Handle with care.