QPR APPOINTS FORMER ENGLAND MANAGER GLENN HODDLE AS FIRST-TEAM COACH

Premier league club Queens Park Rangers have appointed former England manager Glenn Hoddle as first-team coach.

QPR appoints Glenn Hoddle as a first-team coach

The 56-year-old will work alongside current coaches Kevin Bond and Joe Jordan as part of manager Harry Redknapp's backroom staff in his first involvement in club football since stepping down as Wolves boss in 2006.

“I am really pleased to bring Glenn in," Redknapp told the club's website.

I spoke with the chairman about the possibility of bringing Glenn in, and he thought it was a great idea.

"Glenn will be great. He has a brilliant knowledge of the game and will be fantastic out on the training ground with the players."

Hoddle won 53 England caps, playing at the 1982 and 1986 World Cups

Hoddle during his playing days was regarded as one of England's most talented players, winning 53 international caps between 1979 and 1988.

“I am really pleased to take up Harry’s offer to come in and work with him, Kevin and Joe," said Hoddle.

“After winning promotion last season, the first aim at QPR is to stay in the Premier League and I am looking forward to helping play my part as we try to achieve that. 

“I have always loved coaching, and I can’t wait to meet the players, get on the training pitch and get to work.”

Hoddle managed Swindon and Chelsea before being appointed as Terry Venables' successor as England boss in 1996, leading the national team to the 1998 World Cup.

He lost the England manager's job in 1999 after making controversial remarks about disabled people but returned to football at Southampton and later Tottenham, the club where he achieved iconic status as a gifted playmaker in the 1980s.

His last role as a manager came at Wolves, while Hoddle said he had come very close to taking over as Spurs boss in the wake of Andre Villas Boas' departure last season.

Hoddle will be the second former England manager to serve under Redknapp on QPR's coaching staff, as Steve McClaren filled a similar role from July to September last year before leaving to take charge of Derby County.