The Eagles are looking for a win that would bolster their chances of finishing ahead of Chelsea this season, and Hodgson says there is plenty of ambition to compete in European competitions – noting West Ham’s victory in the Europa Conference League semi-final last night.
“Fulham did it as well, so it is not impossible for clubs like Fulham and West Ham who are to some extent in the same ball park as us to have that type of success,” he said. “It’s not unrealistic at all, especially in the future with seven or sometimes eight Premier League teams given the chance to play European football.
“Clubs always want to stride upwards, but there is that rider always that you have to be careful sometimes striving for too much if it is likely to bankrupt the club in some way and send you spiralling in the wrong direction.
“That won’t happen here – the leadership won’t let it happen – so I don’t see why we can’t compare ourselves with the teams above us. But it would take some years and some enormous capital investment for us to start competing with Manchester City.”