Former England manager Hodgson said: “It was no secret we wanted him back because he’d done so well.
“We didn’t want to lose any of that team. We weren’t anxious to lose Yohan Cabaye when he chose to go to Dubai – we weren’t looking to get rid of that team which had done so well.
“Ruben came back from the World Cup and it was clear that the new manager, who hadn’t even been appointed at that time, would probably want some time to assess him before he made a decision.
“So I wasn’t at all surprised that he didn’t go out on loan anywhere and we were fully aware of the situation.
“In Maurizio Sarri’s and Chelsea’s position I’d have done exactly the same.
“I suppose him being a south-east London-born footballer gave us a little bit of a homegrown element, so there’s perhaps more a feeling of, ‘What a shame he’s not here’, than there maybe would be with another player.
“But football is very much a pragmatic business and it’s a big mistake to start wishing for things that you’re never going to have or regretting things that were never going to be possible.
“When he left I was congratulating him on his season, on being picked for England and said to him, ‘Don’t forget, there’s always a place for you here.
“If you are moving on we’d love to have you back, but I’m now expecting you to go to Russia to do extremely well for England – and I’m fully expecting Chelsea to welcome you back with open arms’.”