Wales will next play in the round of 16 on Saturday in Paris against either Albania or one of the third-placed teams in Group C or D.
Advertisement
England will learn the identity of its last-16 opponent on Thursday (AEST) when Group F – featuring Hungary, Iceland, Austria and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal – concludes.
England registered 30 shots on goal during the 0-0 stalemate in Saint Etienne, and Hodgson was left defending the decision to make six changes to his starting line-up as England looked to win the group.
“After a tournament like this you need someone else to take charge of the national side, to take care and develop this side. We are in the knockout stages, which is where we wanted to be, and in the next game we have to try to make sure that we don’t just control the game for long periods and pass the ball reasonably well”.
“You nearly want someone to come and play against you a bit more”.
“I am going to make some changes to the team again, because the game demands it. England will be a different proposition from Russian Federation – I know that very well”.
Hodgson also faced questions for the first time about a possible penalty shoot-out in the knockout stages, and he said: “They get taken every day [in training], so we’ll wait and see”.
For England, there was frustration about its failure to top the group especially after it had come from behind to beat Wales 2-1 in its previous game.
“It’s been an unbelievable two weeks so far and if we keep on playing like that, well, who knows how far we’ll get?”
“It was an unbelievable occasion, right up there with anything I have done”, said Bale.
A much-changed England side toiled fruitlessly in Saint-Etienne, the point ensuring they qualified from Group B but only in second place behind Wales.
“We are disappointed, with the amount of possession we had we should have won the game”.
“It’s probably the best performance I’ve been involved in with Wales”, Bale said.
“Sooner or later, we will get our reward”, Hodgson said.
But despite the Slovakian shut-out, Hart believes England can take the positives of a good team performance for a third successive game in France. “If we’re maxing out and at our best, then we’ve always got a chance”. We dominated play from start to finish really, and we couldn’t unlock the door, which is obviously a bit disappointing for us.
Advertisement
“I’m so lucky to be experiencing something now as a manager, at a tournament, and to see the team perform like that, it’s really pleasing”, he said. “Perhaps I didn’t expect to be pressed so deeply, but we made some subs to neutralize the England attack”.
