England manager Roy Hodgson believes the scrapping of FA Cup quarter-final replays could be the first step to a Premier League winter break.

The Football Association approved the move to ease English football's congested fixture list.

Hodgson suggested the FA and Premier League had been in discussions about the best way to achieve the objective.

"I think it's all designed eventually to maybe providing that elusive winter break," Hodgson said on Thursday.

"There's been no doubt that one of the stumbling blocks has often been 'hold on, you have all of these replays and you're asking us to cut our season down'.

"I think it's only positive that this sort of move has been made."

He added that a break would be aimed at "freshening minds up".

The top divisions in France, Italy, Spain and Germany have winter breaks.

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