England vs Slovakia Euro 2016 preview: Roy Hodgson will rest players despite desire to top the group

Saint Etienne’s Stade Geoffroy-Guichard is not short on historical significance, and the odd warning of the pitfalls of a wrong move, for England’s footballers.

Even Wayne Rooney can recall, without a pause for breath, that he was a 12-year-old, ‘at my nan’s house’ when Michael Owen and David Beckham secured iconic status for wildly-differing reasons the last time England played at this venue, when losing a World Cup second round on penalties to Argentina at France 98.

Owen’s wonder goal and Beckham’s infamous red card, for flicking a leg at Diego Simeone, have been forever etched into the psyche of English football, but as Roy Hodgson contemplates changes to his team for Monday's Group B encounter with Slovakia, the lessons of that night in Saint Etienne eighteen years ago are serving as a reminder of the dangers of failing to finish on top of the qualifying group.

Back in 1998, England only found themselves facing the Argentines in this industrial corner of France having allowed Romania to pip them to top spot.

And while second place would see England face the runners-up in Group F in the second round, victory in that fixture would lead directly to a quarter-final against France at the Stade de France.

However, topping the group would open a path to a potential quarter-final against the likes of Portugal or Belgium and Hodgson admits that, with England’s progression still to be confirmed, he goes into the Slovakia game wanting to make changes, but wary of leaving himself exposed to the prospect of making a mess of his, and his team’s, hopes of success.

“We would like to win the group,” Hodgson said. "We want to win the group because it means we'll play against a third-placed team rather than second or first. So our motivation to win is there for all to see.

“Obviously, had we not needed to win this game, I don’t think there would be any discussion about making changes.

“But as it is, I have to think a lot more carefully because we have to win the game and I don’t want to be accused of not taking the game seriously enough by making changes that people don’t understand.

“All the players are capable of coming into this team and helping us win the match, but the dilemma will be which ones I choose and to what extent I keep together a team that has taken four points out of six.”

Hodgson’s dilemma is rooted in a desire to freshen his team and reward those, such as Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge, who have rewarded him by delivering from the bench, as they both did so crucially when scoring goals in the 2-1 victory against Wales in Lens on Thursday.

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Vardy and Sturridge are set to replace Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling, but Hodgson is also considering a starting role for Jack Wilshere ahead of Dele Alli and handing game time to full-backs Nathaniel Clyne and Ryan Bertrand.

Slovakia are not a team to be under-estimated, however, with Jan Kozak’s team defeating Spain during qualification and winning in Germany just last month.

A draw would leave England vulnerable to being overtaken by Wales in the pursuit of top spot, while a defeat could place Hodgson’s team in third and facing a second round clash with Spain or Germany.

"As a team, we certainly think Slovakia are very dangerous going forward,” Hodgson said. “They have a strng front line and although I didn't want to single him out, Marek Hamsik does need singling out because he is an exceptional player.

"They have people who can really hurt you, but like all teams, sometimes their strength can be a part of their weaknesses.

"I think we go into this game well prepared but we also go into it knowing that we are playing an opponent who, if we aren't careful, could cause is lots of problems and if they do that and we don't get the result we want, we will have made life more difficult for ourselves.

“It wouldn't be a problem if I wanted to keep the same side, but there are players who would like to play and have been knocking on the door to play.

“I have the option because everyone is anxious to show what they want to do. It's a question of what we'd like to do, rather than what is necessary.”

Safely negotiating the Slovakia test would ease the pressure on England and, at the same time, Hodgson, whose future has once again been brought into sharp focus by FA chairman Greg Dyke’s comments about a run to the semi-finals being the only way to guarantee a new contract.

Hodgson, however, insisted that Dyke’s contribution will not affect his approach in France.

“My contract runs out after this tournament, everyone knows about that,” Hodgson said. “On a regular basis the subject gets brought up: should I stay? Do I want to stay? What should the FA do?

“We're only concentrating on winning the next game to see how far we can go, whether that's the last 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals or final.

“That's what we concentrate on, to be ready for the game we're about to play.

“One day, after our sojourn and stay here in the tournament ends, the FA will need to make a decision as to what they want to do in regards to the future.

"I shall continue to focus on the job until such time as the FA say 'we don't need you any more we're employing somebody else' and then I'll move on."