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| Michael Regan - The FA |
While Iceland continue to flow in the joy of their first-ever European Championship win, England will suffer what will go down as one of their most humiliating defeats ever.
Always a champion and now a loser after playing such a small team isn't something to reckon with. No manager could possibly survive such a defeat, and English manager Roy Hodgson knew it.
Following a shocking 2-1 defeat in the round of 16 at the Euros 2016 on Monday, Hodgson wasted no time stepping down, finalizing his legacy as a coach who struggled in major tournaments at the helm of the Three Lions.
"I know we are in the results business," Hodgson said. "Now is the time for someone else to oversee the progress of this young, hungry, group. They've been fantastic and did everything I have asked of them."
The move is hardly a surprise for English fans. Hodgson's contract was set to expire at the end of the tournament and the expectations were clear: The head of England's Football Association said Hodgson would only earn an extension if England "do well."
An exit in the Round of 16 at the hands of minnow Iceland clearly did not meet that standard. That's not to say that Iceland haven't looked like a team that belongs, but the fact remains that Iceland, in their first-ever Euro, is a country of just 320,000 and England's population is nearly 190 times bigger.
Hodgson had been floundering on the big stage seemingly since he took the job in 2012. Under his leadership, England had managed to win three times in two Euro tournaments and a world cup. When England were knocked out of the 2014 World Cup in the group stage, it was their worst World Cup since 1958.
Fans had become fed up with Hodgson's roster selections, with his decision to make six changes from his full-strength starting lineup against Slovakia in this Euros particularly coming under fire. That match ended in a poor 0-0 draw and the FA made their displeasure with his risk-taking apparent.
Source: Foxsports
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