In five previous cup outings this season - in the Carling Cup and Uefa Cup - the eight-times FA Cup winners have lost only one game away from home and they were quickly into their stride at Craven Cottage.
"Whatever happens this has been a very good season, " reflected Hodgson, who when he was in charge at Inter Milan saw his team lose on penalties to Schalke 04 in the two-legged final of the competition's former incarnation - the Uefa Cup - in 1997.
And Dutch side PSV Eindhoven have been given a one-match stadium ban by Uefa following crowd trouble at their Uefa Cup quarter-final match against Kaiserslautern on March 15.
If Rangers manage a score draw or better against Fiorentina on Thursday in the second-leg of the Uefa Cup semi-final, they will reach the final to be held in Manchester on 14 May.
The Spaniard enjoyed back-to-back Uefa Cup triumphs with Sevilla and guided Tottenham to February's League Cup final where they beat Chelsea 2-1 for the club's first trophy since 1999.
Add to the mix 10 England caps, two Uefa Cup runners-up medals and one each for the FA Cup and the European Cup Winners' Cup and Parlour can reflect on a glittering career at the top.
BBC: SPORT | Football | My Club | Hull City | Parlour game for Tigers test
Yorkshireman Storton, signed by Bill Shankly from Tranmere, was part of the Reds' Uefa Cup-winning squad in 1973.
He has got people like Pavel Pogrebnyak and Andrei Arshavin, who both showed with Uefa Cup-winning side Zenit St Petersburg that they are quality players who can play to a very high level.
Javier Sanchez Broto returned to goal after being cup-tied for the Uefa Cup final, being preferred to Rab Douglas, who is still not fully match fit.
Vedran Corluka, who played at right-back on Sunday, is cup-tied for the club's Uefa Cup trip to Nijmegen on Thursday, while skipper Ledley King will be rested.
Sir Bobby, who twice steered Newcastle United into the Champions League, led the club to the Uefa Cup semi-final in 2004.
Former Anfield playmaker Murphy played all 117 minutes of Liverpool's 5-4 Uefa Cup final win over another Spanish side, Deportivo Alaves, in Dortmund in 2001.
Chris Loftus, 35, and Kevin Speight, 40, were killed in Istanbul on the eve of Leeds' Uefa Cup semi-final against Galatasaray on 5 April 2000.
April promises to be a hectic month for Rangers, with a Uefa Cup quarter-final tie against Sporting Lisbon to be played on the 3rd and 10th.
The two-legged Uefa Cup ties will be played on 19 July and 2 August, with the Saints in action in the Champions League on 17 and 25 July.
Videoton, Uefa Cup runners-up in 1985, qualified for Europe by finishing second in the Hungarian league, while Maribor are Slovenian Cup winners and boast former Rangers winger Bojan Djordjic in their squad.
Kewell has been named on the six-man short list for both awards, a recognition of a startling season for the young Australian, who has spearheaded Leeds' brilliant Premiership campaign and their run to the UEFA Cup semi-finals.
Eriksson made a name for himself in his homeland with IFK Gothenburg before moving to Benfica where he won two Portuguese league titles, a Portuguese cup and the team finished runners-up in the Uefa Cup.
He steered Milan to the Coppa Italia in 2003, the Serie A title in 2003--04, the UEFA Champions League in both 2002--03 and 2006--07, the UEFA Super Cup in 2003 and 2007 and the FIFA Club World Cup crown in 2007.
Mourinho has emerged as one of Europe's most highly sought-after coaches after guiding Porto to Uefa Cup glory last season and the semi-finals of the Champions League this year.
BBC: SPORT | Football | Premiership | Mourinho admits interest
On the eve of Parma's 3-0 1999 Uefa Cup final victory over Olympique Marseille, Cannavaro was videoed inserting a drip into his arm.
Fifa also approved a trial to use two extra assistant referees behind the goallines for next season's Europa League - formerly the UEFA Cup.
He enjoyed instant success in Andalucia, scoring in the club's 4-0 2006 Uefa Cup final win over Middlesbrough and, the following season, finishing as Spain's second highest goalscorer in all competitions.
Martin O'Neill's side lifted themselves from the disappointment of midweek defeat in the Uefa Cup final and - for 10 minutes at least - looked on course to leapfrog great rivals Rangers on a thrilling final day to the season.
To recap: The Europa League is a rebranded version of the UEFA Cup, which itself started as the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and absorbed the former European Cup Winners' Cup down the road.
Having already limped out of the Uefa Cup and FA Cup, Portsmouth's 3-2 defeat by Liverpool last Saturday underlined their defensive fragility - a surprise considering Adams' career as a top centre-half - and that proved to be the manager's last match in charge.
Atletico Madrid takes the UEFA Super Cup against Chelsea 4-1 and Falcao is the star of the show with a hat-trick.
And, if Rangers progress to the semi-final of the Uefa Cup, they will come up against either PSV Eindhoven or Fiorentina four days later.
Carew was given his first start for nearly three months up front as his team looked to continue their fine form - unbeaten since their Uefa Cup loss at Hamburg in December.
And he defended his former side - who have been criticised for their defensive style of play over the course of this season - and said the Uefa Cup final in Manchester is too close to call.
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