Steve HODGE

A vastly underrated player, Steve Hodge was the reason England coach Bobby Robson could resist the many calls for John Barnes to be unleashed on the 1986 World Cup as England stuttered their way through their opening two group games in Mexico, winning neither. Aston Villa midfielder Hodge, used as a sub in those matches and therefore unable to turn the tide, was handed a starting role for the third and final group match against Poland which England had to win. His performance was exemplary, flying up and down the flank with the industrious combination of offensive vigour and defensive discipline which Robson demanded of his flair players. Hodge was only three caps into his England career - all summer friendlies and with just one start, against Scotland in a 2-1 win - before Robson named his squad, but he emerged from the tournament as one of his country's most recognisable stars. Gary Lineker's magnificent hat-trick which saw off the Poles and put England into round two owed part of its creation to Hodge, who sprinted triumphantly on to the most famous instinctive pass of Peter Beardsley's career to curl in a perfect first time low ball which Lineker fired home instantaneously.

Steve's place was undoubtedly secure thereafter, and his willingness to chase a lost cause helped Lineker again when, having failed to get a touch on Glenn Hoddle's teasing grounded cross, the striker was given a second bite by a late arriving Hodge on the opposite side, who toed a stretching return cross into Lineker's path. Robson kept Steve duly in place for the quarter-final against the might of Argentina (the photo above is during the national anthem just prior to the game), and this was where Hodge's World Cup went slightly sour, miscueing a clearance from a broken Argentina attack towards his own goalkeeper Peter Shilton as Diego Maradona's evil intentions got the better of him and his fist put the Argentines into the ascendancy. Only when England went 2-0 down to Maradona's stunning solo goal five minutes later did Robson finally bite the bullet and send on Barnes, but Hodge wasn't sacrificed. He moved more into the deep centre as England played a wide four-man attack and Barnes set up Lineker once and then nearly twice. Steve's only consolation in defeat was the shirt off Maradona's back during the traditional post-match exchange. (Matthew Rudd)

A £650, 000 move to Spurs in December '86 was the reward for Steve Hodge's World Cup exploits but he struggled to reproduce his best form and in August 1988 returned for a second spell to home town club Nottingham Forest where Brian Clough put him on the left side of central midfield, initially alongside Neil Webb, then Garry Parker. Up until this period, Hodge had continued to usurp John Barnes for the wide left position for England, playing in the first four qualifiers for the 1988 European Championships against Northern Ireland (twice), Yugoslavia and Turkey, losing none. An injury in late 1987, plus the scintillating form of Barnes after his move to Liverpool, subsequently ruined Hodge's further hopes of occupying the flank for his country. He wasn't selected for the 1988 European Championship squad and made just one appearance in that calendar year - a 1-0 win over Denmark in September. However, Robson couldn't ignore Steve's superb form for Forest and recalled him, without much guarantee of a starting position, for a friendly against Italy in November 1989 at Wembley. Hodge came on as a sub for Steve McMahon and put in a thrilling 20 minute cameo during a match which could give goalless draws a bad name, such was its excitement.

Steve duly stayed in the squad for the rest of the warm-up period, playing in four of the matches and getting his first England start in almost two years in the final preparatory game in Tunisia. Named in the squad, and thought to have a chance of occupying the left flank position thus freeing up Barnes for a more central role, Hodge suffered an injury during training to the sad effect that he was rendered unfit for the whole tournament and ultimately became the only outfield player not to play some part in England's march to the semi-finals. After the competition, Robson's successor Graham Taylor justifiably omitted Hodge from his first three squads as he was struggling to hold down regular first team football at Forest due to a combination of injuries and a teenage Roy Keane's emergence. Steve came on as a sub in a friendly against Cameroon and then replaced debutant Geoff Thomas in a European Championship qualifier in Turkey. Afterwards he barely started a game for Forest, culminating in a place only on the bench for the FA Cup final, and was consequently not selected again for his country. A summer move to Leeds United could have enhanced his chances in their title-winning season but again he found the competition for a place too strenuous and he faded from the scene. (Matthew Rudd)