Wednesday 16 May 2018 21:02, UK
Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson is to be awarded the Freedom of the Borough of Croydon.
Hodgson, who was born in Croydon, took over from Frank de Boer in September with the club rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table after losing their first four matches of the season.
The Eagles failed to pick up a point for a further four games but former England boss Hodgson led a remarkable comeback to help guide the team to an 11th-placed finish on 44 points.
Hodgson, who was a boyhood Palace fan and a former youth player at Selhurst Park, will receive the honour 'in recognition of his contribution to Croydon and to football'.
"It is a great honour to be awarded the Freedom of the Borough and I would like to thank Cllr Newman and his colleagues for awarding it to me," Hodgson told Palace's website.
"I could never have dreamt that my journey in life would take me from walking to Selhurst Park with my father and sitting on the crossbar at the Holmesdale Road End, to managing the club I have always supported and to being recognised by Croydon Council for my career in football."
Council Leader Tony Newman said: "I'm delighted to be recommending Roy for Freedom of the Borough as he represents all that is great about Croydon.
"Born and raised here, he's had a remarkable international career in football, and to cap it all he's now the manager and saviour of Crystal Palace."
