Hodgson Says Bristol City Spell Left Him Missing the Dugout

Roy Hodgson managed Bristol City for seven Championship matches in the final stretch of last season, winning three and drawing two, and says the brief spell has left him wanting to work in football again. The 79-year-old took temporary charge after the club parted company with Gerhard Struber and left at the end of the campaign.

Hodgson said the role came from an unexpected phone call. "I had that phone call out of the blue from Richard Scudamore asking me if I'd ever be available to spend time and work with Bristol City, with the Bristol City team, for the last seven games of the season," he told The Jeff Stelling Show, produced by OLBG. The episode is scheduled for release in November. He said he had considered declining, adding, "I think he was expecting me to say, 'No, I'm finished now. I'm too old for that.' But I didn't." The work followed an invitation from Scudamore and came after Hodgson saw former colleague Ray Lewington active at Brentford. "I'd seen Ray Lewington energised by the little bit of work he's doing with Brentford, and I thought it might be good for me as well, getting me out of bed in the mornings," he said.

The appointment in south Bristol marked a return to the club Hodgson first managed in the 1980s, more than 40 years earlier. It also ended a break from club football that began when his second spell at Crystal Palace concluded two years prior. Bristol City finished 12th in the Championship after his seven matches in charge.

Hodgson departed Ashton Gate in May, and Michael Skubala filled the vacancy at the end of that month. Hodgson had said from the start that he would not extend beyond the end of the 2025/26 campaign. He spent his time working with the squad at the High Performance Centre training pitches.

He described the period as "a magical six weeks" and said the memory now creates a sense of loss. "The major problem was, of course, that it was such a magical six weeks that I had down there that now I miss it, and now I no longer have it," he said.

Asked about another spell in management, Hodgson said he would not seek one out. "There are lots of coaches, lots of managers around who need jobs, and the game's been very, very kind to me," he said. He added that he could not imagine the call arriving on its own. "If it happens, then I think I'd probably jump at it again," he said. "But I don't envisage it, and I certainly don't have anyone punting for it. So it would be a strange phone call, and someone would have to work very hard to make that phone call."

Hodgson's comments are part of an episode of The Jeff Stelling Show, produced by OLBG, set for release in November.