Roy Hodgson thinks Spain’s shock defeat to Slovakia proves England should not take their encounter with Estonia lightly today.
After beating Switzerland and San Marino, England are big favourites to make it three wins from three qualifying matches when they take on Estonia in Tallinn this weekend. The Baltic nation are ranked 81st in the world – below Antigua and Barbuda – and have never qualified for a major international tournament.
But Hodgson thinks the old adage that there are no easy games in international football – other than perhaps against San Marino – has been proven recently. Spain lost 2-1 away to Slovakia this week while in the last round of matches Albania defeated Portugal.
“The players are aware of those results,” the England manager said. “These results are happening more and more.
“Maybe 20 or 30 years ago a game between an England and an Estonia or Luxembourg would be an easy game. But we all realise now it will only be an easy game if you play well enough to make it an easy game.
“And we won’t be taking this one lightly.”
Hodgson, who has brought a full squad of 21 players to Tallinn, watched his team take 24 minutes to score against part-timers San Marino on Thursday. This time he is looking for his players to ease the pressure on themselves by striking early at the A. Le Coq Arena, where 10,000 fans are expected to turn up on Sunday afternoon.
A change in qualifying format means Hodgson’s players have had less than 72 hours to prepare for the match in Estonia’s capital, which has been awash with excitement at the visit of England’s stars like Wayne Rooney and Raheem Sterling.
England have only had one full training session since the San Marino game.
