Glenn Hoddle gazes back down Wembley Way, the promenade where so many English football dreams have ended in tears, and dares to dream.
“It really does feel like our time is now,” says the former England manager.
Wembley was once Hoddle’s ‘office’ until he was turfed out over some careless talk about karma and the disabled. Now he is talking up England’s prospects at Euro 2024 and recalling the scary Saturday lunchtime in 2018 when he went into cardiac arrest after a close encounter with a lizard in a TV studio, and his life was saved by the heroic intervention of sound technician Simon Daniels.
More on the story of that karma chameleon later. But Hoddle, whose England team deserved a kinder fate than they were afforded at the World Cup 26 years ago, fancies England’s chances in Germany this summer and he can feel the old sap rising again.
“There are genuine reasons why we can go toe-to-toe with the best in Europe now because we have so much outstanding young talent, especially higher up the pitch,” he says. "I just hope we go in with that real, genuine belief that we are better than everyone else.
“It’s not the English way, but we need a touch of that French arrogance, we need a touch of that German winning mentality. We can look people in the eye in the tunnel and say, ‘We’re better than you.' Even if we’re not as strong defensively, we’re going to have a lot of the ball and opponents can’t hurt us if they don’t have the ball.
“And there is a real depth to the squad now - whoever Gareth Southgate picks, if someone got injured, the replacement would be as good. Look at Geoff Hurst - he didn’t start the 1966 World Cup in the team, but when Jimmy Greaves was injured, he took his chance.
“We’ve even got the best passer of the ball I’ve seen for many years - better than Kevin de Bruyne - and I don’t know how we get him in the team, and that’s Trent Alexander-Arnold. He hits passes that are out of this world. Dear me, what a talent to have up your sleeve.
“The depth reminds me of my squad in 1998, when I probably had nine strikers to choose from and most of them couldn’t get a game. Robbie Fowler hardly got a look-in because I had Shearer, Owen, Sheringham, Ferdinand, Wright and Collymore as well. How do you fit all of them in?”
After three defeats in a row, Hoddle’s beloved Tottenham have hit a series of potholes at an untimely stage of the season. But the former king of White Hart Lane can still see the bigger picture, even if it’s not yet a masterpiece, saying: “It’s been so refreshing because they have gone from the other end of the scale where it was toxic and unwatchable.
“Big Ange (Postecoglou) has come in and despite losing Harry Kane at the start of the season, he’s taken the fear away from the way they play and he’s done a fabulous job. But - and there is a but here - as I found out, there is a balance to strike, especially at the back, and there’s a few things I hope we learn from this year. It’s not rocket science, it’s not just about silverware, but in two or three years from now, I’ll be excited to see where we are.”
We meet at the launch of the British Heart Foundation and Sky Bet’s terrific campaign, Every Minute Counts, an initiative to train at least 270,000 people in the life-saving art of CPR over the next 12 months. It only takes 15 minutes.
Hoddle, now 66, collapsed shortly after filming a TV show with Mirror Sport’s Robbie Savage and studio guests Harry Redknapp and Paul Ince. He was lucky to survive - and that Daniels, who sprang into action within seconds, performed CPR with sufficient vigour that he broke seven of Hoddle’s ribs. Sounds nasty, but it’s a good sign that the compression is effective.
“By doing CPR, you might do a bit of damage, but how much worse does it get than cardiac arrest? There’s no point in being shy,” said Daniels, whose modesty does not detract from his heroic intervention.
Hoddle said: “It was my birthday, I remember Robbie and Incey had bought me a cake, and I recalled seeing a lizard in the studio because Harry was on the show and he was going into the jungle (to appear on I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here!’)
“I don’t remember anything about collapsing, or Simon appearing out of nowhere to save my life - just coming round in hospital under a bright light with doctors and nurses leaning over me. And I remember telling my family about the lizard and they all thought, ‘Hello, he’s on the morphine.’
“The scary thing about cardiac arrest is that with every minute that goes by, your chances of surviving diminish by 10 per cent. That’s why this campaign is called Every Minute Counts.
“Over the years I’ve thought about it a few times, as you would… I was so fortunate that fate played its hand and it wasn’t my time to go.”
Every Minute Counts: Visit www.bhf.org.uk and click on Learn CPR link to find out how to save a life in 15 minutes using the RevivR online learning tool
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