"You don't want to lose your best players. He has a year-and-a-half left on his contract, and I hope he stays," Hodgson has said.
"But I have to be realistic in that if a top player is in form and doing well then he will be coveted by other clubs.
"I can't give a stonewall guarantee that we'll be able to hold on to him. I hope we can, but we'll have to wait and see what happens in the transfer window.
"I suppose the fact he's getting international recognition has forced the contract talks along.
"In the beginning, he was asked to show some patience and wait until the end of this year.
"Negotiations have opened up, and it's an ongoing process. I'm sure that we'll see a solution in the near future but I don't want to be put on the spot over the time frame.
"We've discussed Jimmy, but there are complicated issues involved, finance and money.
"The board knows my feelings on the subject and they know Jimmy's feelings, so it's up to them to sort the matter out."