England coach Roy Hodgson was defiant yesterday over his job prospects.

Hodgson, whose England team face Iceland in the last 16 on Monday, is under pressure after dropping six players for the final group game in which England failed to win, landing themselves in a half of the draw that includes host nation France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

He said: "I'm prepared to carry on if the FA want me to. If they don't want me to then my contract will run out and that is how that will be. I'm not begging for the job.

"I believe in what I've done in particular over the last couple of years. I believe in the team I'm working with and believe the team is showing such potential that it will go on and do good things.

"I think it can be the start of something. Certainly I know that I and my coaching staff are capable of carrying on.

"But the FA will make the decision as to what they want to do. One hopes they will do it on their thinking and their observations and their judgment and analysis on what is happening with the national team and not because some journalist has written else something contrary to that."