Hodgson: Liverpool might be a tough job but taking over at Fulham in 2007 was tougher

For many, Liverpool is the impossible job right now. For new manager Roy Hodgson, it is merely a challenge that will take a little longer.

The vastly experienced coach has just about seen and done it all in the four decades since he first started on the managerial trail in the 1970s.

So when the pointed question arrived yesterday, aimed, perhaps, at putting into context the mess the new boss has inherited after a disastrous season where Liverpool limped to a lame seventh place in the table, it solicited only a wry smile.

"Is this the impossible job, Roy," he was asked, with more than a hint of bite to the question. The response was as simple as it was surprising, though no one should be surprised at the impressive performance the new Liverpool boss offered yesterday.

Hodgson is a veteran campaigner, who is prepared to talk straight and honestly...not always a characteristic seen around Anfield in recent years.

To him, the chance to work with some of the world's top players at one of the biggest, most illustrious clubs in the history of football, is not a poisoned chalice, it is a privilege.

"The impossible job? I don't think any job is impossible, but perhaps the one people thought no-one in their right mind should take was in 2007 when Fulham were virtually relegated," he mused.

"We had four matches coming up against Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal and West Ham away, and not too many expected us to get a lot of points from them.

"People thought we would have nine or ten games to peg back an 11 or 12 point deficit, so if ever there was a job you would say no-one in their right mind should take, it was that.

"So there is no question about this being compared to that one. I am taking on one here with enormous prospects.

"You could be talking of new owners, wanting to back the club in the right way, making funds available allowing us to get the players we need, so it could be fantastic.

"Of course I know that it might not be like that, but it is certainly not more impossible than the Fulham job was back then.""

While Liverpool's American owners remain at Anfield, content to pile debt on the club to pay for their purchase of the "English franchise", there will always be a cloud hanging over the place.

Yet there was a suggestion yesterday that there is light at the end of the tunnel, with chairman Martin Broughton insisting that the process of a sale is underway, and there could even be new owners by the end of August.

That would mean, of course, the prospect of the new boss having to justify his position before he has even got the season underway...and perhaps even the prospect of the new owners preferring their own man.

Yet for Hodgson, a true football man who is as calm as he is resolute, it is the positives he prefers to dwell on, given that Liverpool represents the pinnacle of his career alongside his successful spell with Inter Milan.

"There are so many positives to this role, so many pros, that I do tend to push any cons to one side, because the chance to work at one of the world's biggest clubs doesn't come along very often," he said.

"Of course new owners could mean they want their own man. To a certain extent there is some protection in my contract, but you can never have anything watertight, but to me, that is irrelevant anyway.

"I am here because this job excites, and I want to be successful for the fans, for the club and for myself.

"There aren't so many clubs in England today where there aren't some questions over finance, but this job excites me as much as any other I've ever had.

"You wouldn't be a proper football person and as passionate about football as I think I am, if a job of this nature didn't excite you.

"It is certainly up there with the other big jobs like Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea. And for me it's the biggest job because it's where I am working.

"It isn't just a big job in English football, it's a big job worldwide because Liverpool is a world icon."

While Hodgson stopped short of suggesting he aims to bring trophies back to Liverpool after four years without any silverware, he knows that is what is expected of him.

And he insisted yesterday he can live with the expectation of that, which will be a refreshing change for the club's fans who are desperate to see honours brought back to Anfield.

"I come here expecting the supporters to crave success and crave trophies, and I hope to give them that - that is what a club the size of Liverpool must always aim for," he said.

"It may take a little time, and I hope there can be some patience until we get there, but they are the traditions and history of this club, and it is what we all want.

"I am looking forward to that challenge, I can't deny it. I am here for the long haul, I am here to try to do the job as it should be done, and I hope all the supporters can get behind us in our aim to do that.

"One of the single most impressive things about this impressive club is that the fans' song is not just a motto, it is a mantra. They say you'll never walk alone, and I really hope the fans will come along too."