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Roy aims for 50th Euro tie
From the Lancashire Evening Telegraph, first published Thursday 27th Aug 1998.
ROY HODGSON has a golden milestone in mind as he eagerly awaits tomorrow's UEFA Cup first round draw.
For the Blackburn Rovers boss revealed today that he needs to clock up just eight more games in European competition to reach the magical mark of 50.
"We would have to reach the quarter finals to make it this season," said Hodgson, who has led Halmstad, Malmo, Neuchatel Xamax and Inter Milan into a combined total of 42 European games.
Now he is ready to return to the major stage with Rovers some 15 months after his last appointment - in the San Siro where Inter were unluckily beaten on penalties by Schalke in the final of the UEFA Cup.
With such vast experience, Hodgson knows just how difficult the UEFA Cup campaign can be.
"It will be very tough but we are looking forward to it," said the manager.
"If we have a bit of luck with the draw maybe we can have a long run in the competition.
"It is certainly one of our objectives for the season. "Even if we draw a top team in the first round, there would be two full houses to anticipate. And I don't think we are beaten before we start if we are paired, for example, with a leading Italian club. We have a good squad."
On previous occasions, Rovers went into the UEFA Cup as novices and, to a certain degree, they were similarly placed the following year with the Champions' League when the club had failed to strengthen the squad.
That experience should stand them in good stead this time and Hodgson pointed out that there was a also a great deal of international know-how in the squad.
There is also the management factor.
Hodgson returns to Europe after taking Inter all the way to the final where they were unlucky to be beaten.
He recalls that 1996-97 campaign vividly.
"We played 12 games in the competition, now you only have to play 11 because the final is a one-off match," he said.
"In the first round we met Guingamp of France and it proved to be one of the worst games I saw Inter play in my time. We won 3-0 but I was embarrassed coming off the field.
"The second leg was a 1-1 draw and 7,000 people in the San Siro expressed their disappointment.
"Then we beat Casino Graz 1-0 at home, lost 1-0 away, had a player sent off and, after extra time, won on penalties. "In the third round we played quite well against Boavista then beat Anderlecht in the quarter finals.
"We overcame Monaco in the semi-finals then had to play through extra time with only 10 men, after having a player sent off in the second leg of the final against Schalke, eventually losing on penalties."
It would be ironic if the German club were paired with Rovers in Monaco tomorrow. Rovers officials, including chief executive John Williams and secretary Tom Finn, will be appraised of the seeding arrangements prior to tomorrow lunchtime's draw.
Co-efficients (the rating of clubs in Europe, or that of their countries where it is higher) will also be revealed to determine the top 16 seeds who will then be kept apart in the early stages.
It is expected that clubs from the same country will also be prevented from meeting each other, at least in the first round.
Jeff Kenna and Damien Duff are in the Republic of Ireland squad to face Croatia in Dublin on September 5 as the European Championship qualifiers get under way. David Worrell is in the under-21 squad to play Croatia the previous night.
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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