‘Outstanding potential’ – Palace boss Hodgson asked about Paddy McCarthy’s future managerial career

BY ANDREW MCSTEEN

Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson has praised assistant manager Paddy McCarthy ahead of the Eagles’ clash at home against Bournemouth on Saturday.

McCarthy, who was U21 manager at the time, took interim charge of the 4-1 defeat of Arsenal in the Premier League after Patrick Vieira was sacked.

The Irish coach was named as Hodgson’s assistant manager when the 75-year-old was announced as the permanent Palace boss until the end of the season.

“He’s a very good coach, that’s the most important thing – it doesn’t necessarily need to go beyond that,” said Hodgson when asked about what the former Palace captain brings to his management team, which long-term coach Ray Lewington and goalkeeping coach Dean Kiely complete.

“He’s a very good communicator. If I’m looking to employ a coach, I’m looking for someone like Paddy McCarthy. I’m looking for some of that personality, someone with that confidence, that belief and that knowledge.

 “He’s fitted in extremely well [and] we’ve just been very pleased to have what we need,” added Hodgson. “Had Paddy McCarthy not been here, we might have been saying to the chairman, and to (director of football) Doug Freedman, we would like someone else alongside us to help out with the work that we do.

 “We were just fortunate that we were given Paddy as that person when we came and we were delighted to welcome him on board. Before, we had Stephen Reid and Dave Reddington. We liked that balance – someone who’s come from the academy world, who knows a lot about the young players and who can keep us informed about what’s going on at the academy when we need to bring players over.”

Despite the possible end of his own managerial career, which started in Sweden back in 1976, on the horizon, Hodgson was in no doubt about the potential of McCarthy in a managerial role going forward.

 “When you’re as good a coach as he is, you have the personality he has and the ability to get on with players and to empathise with players in the way he does – because he was a good player himself – if you’ve got all those tools in your box, there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t be a good manager,” said Hodgson about McCarthy, who made 151 appearances across eight seasons for the Eagles, before returning as U18 coach in 2016.

 “He’s got an outstanding potential to have an exceptional career and it has been a real pleasure to get to know him in the way I have now.  We would speak occasionally when I would see him come over with the academy players, but to get to know him and see his work as I’ve done in these last six or seven weeks, it’s been really, really good. I can’t speak highly enough of him.”

PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD