Hodgson two steps from glory

Suspensions have eliminated three first-team regulars from the first leg of the final against German side Schalke 04.

They are Paul Ince, Yuri Djorkaeff and Jocelyn Angloma, two of which - Ince and Djorkaeff - represent the engine room of the Inter team.

Hodgson is left to select from 13 first team players, a goalkeeper and two juniors who have never before appeared in the senior side and owe their inclusion as much to making up numbers as having made massive strides.

Hodgson is not entirely chuffed.

"It's not ideal particularly as two of the players ruled out through suspension, Ince and Djorkaeff, are rated the best at this club," he said, in between interviews for Italian and German journalists.

"Basically, I have to shuffle the others but we have a small squad and there are restrictions to what you can do.

"Our aim is to get at least a draw, a score draw if possible because of the value of the away goal.

"But I have no illusions about it.

"Schalke are a very competitive side.

"They work very hard like all German sides, they run for each other and they have a good spirit.

"There's never an easy German team to beat."

Inter are favoured to win though, having come through 3-1 winners over Monaco at the semi-final stage.

"I think the tag of favourites dates back to the club's glorious past, rather than anything that's been done in the last 15 years," said Hodgson, however.

"It's only this year that that we have returned to that kind of level.

"It would be tremendous to win the UEFA Cup but I hope that the 20-odd years I've been working won't be obscured by one match.

"If we win it's great but things won't be any easier when I get to my new club." Dominique Antognoni, editor of Football Europe said: "It is laughable for a club the size of Inter Milan not to have 15, 16, 17 players, of suitable status, to play in a UEFA Cup final.

"If Inter have one or two players injured or suspended, they have no possibilities to replace them.

"It's very incredible.

"Milan (AC), Roma, Parma, Juventus each have a big team prepared at the beginning of the season with 20 players able to play 50, 60 games a season.

"But (Massimo) Moratti, Inter's owner, decides that because Hodgson is leaving they will not buy players until the new season. It is so stupid."

Things have not been easy at Inter for Hodgson.

From the outset the Italian media were sceptical and before long they were openly critical.

Inside the club, there are problems too, though the players have remained intensely loyal.

Inter's fans are ambivalent too, happy when the team is winning, ready to form lynching mobs after the most isolated defeats.

All this is beyond the comprehension of Sven Goran Eriksson, the Swedish coach of Sampdoria whose indecision before reaching a decision about whether or not to come to Blackburn left the door open long enough for Hodgson.

"I don't understand why all the press are against him because Roy Hodgson has at last realised good results again for Inter," said Eriksson, destined for Lazio along with his captain Roberto Mancini at the end of the season.

"It's very difficult to do more than he has.

"He's got the team to the semi-final of the Italian Cup where they were knocked out on penalties, they are third in Serie A just four points behind Parma with a good chance still of qualifying for the Champions League and they are in the UEFA Cup final.

"What more do people want?

In Italy they want their cake and they want to eat it at the same time.

Many will have to eat their words if Hodgson clinches the UEFA Cup in a fortnight.

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