The Football Association gave its backing to England manager Roy Hodgson on Thursday after he inadvertently created a media storm by telling his squad a joke about a monkey.

Hodgson apologized after several British newspapers reported he had told the joke at halftime of his side's 2-0 win over Poland on Tuesday, which saw it qualify for next year's World Cup.

But the manager later said he was furious about the row, and feared there was a smear campaign against him which could hamper his team's preparations for Brazil.