Roy Hodgson backs Patrick Vieira to find a new club 'very soon'

Roy Hodgson has backed Patrick Vieira to become a top Premier League manager, though cannot bring himself to phone the man whose job he took at Crystal Palace.

Palace face Leicester on Saturday in the first of a series of six-pointers between now and the end of the season, as Hodgson aims to steer the club towards safety.

'I had dinner with him when he took the job,' Hodgson said. 'I always admired him very much as a player and had a chance to admire him as a person and get to know him that little bit.

'But of course when you come into a job and someone's just lost their job, unless he happens to be a close friend, it's not an easy thing to do to pick up the phone.

Roy Hodgson has returned to his role at Crystal Palace manager for the rest of the season

It comes after Patrick Vieira was sacked despite keeping the Eagles 12th in the league table

'I don't know quite what I would say to him. But I do know that Patrick Vieira has a big future ahead of him as a manager and there's no doubt he will get another club very, very soon.'

Vieira is now being linked with Leeds and some felt it was unfair that he was sacked, given Palace's challenging run of fixtures before the international break.

Hodgson continued: 'I can only hope that the experience he had here won't disturb his chances of doing very, very well in the next job because he has all the tools necessary to become a top manager.'