Fabio Capello New England Manager
F A Appoint Italian to Replace Steve McLaren as International Coach
Dec 14, 2007
Fabio Capello has been appointed as the new England manager. The Football Association have moved swiftly to replace Steve McLaren who was sacked last month following the defeat to Croatia at Wembley which resulted in England failing to qualify for the European Championships to be held in Austria and Switzerland next summer.
Capello - the Player
Capello who scored a goal against England at Wembley as Italy defeated triumphed there for the first time in 1973, has an impressive record as a player and a manager
He played at the highest level, making thirty two International appearances for Italy as well as playing for Roma, Juventus and AC Milan. He was a central midfield player who could control the game and this brought him success with Roma, the Italian Cup, three league titles and two runner-up places at Juventus. He was the lynch pin in a very talented and successful Juve team which were runners-up in the European Cup. He finished his career with AC Milan where he won the Italian Cup and the league title.
Capello - the Coach
Capello is regarded as one of the best coaches around and his record speaks for itself. He has won the league title with every club he has managed.
- At Milan he won the title four times in five years as well as the Champions League in 1994.
- He then had a season at Real Madrid and won La Liga title.
- He returned to AC Milan for a year but was sacked after an unsuccessful spell.
- Moving to Roma he won the title during his five year tenure but he had difficulties with both players and fans.
He then coached Juventus for two years during which they won the title but were stripped of their prize due to their involvement in the Italian match-fixing scandal. He resigned due to this and returned to Real Madrid.
- At Real he took the La Liga title in an exciting climax to the season last June.
Capello and David Beckham
Capello had David Beckham in his squad last season but initially dropped him from the team vowing never to play him again. At this time Beckham agreed to sign for LA Galaxy but Capello re-instated him to a revitalised Real team which recovered to snatch the title from Barcelona. He was sacked later in the month, the fans critical of his style of football.
Capello as England Manager
Capello is a determined, opinionated manager who is not afraid to upset players or supporters but he has a rich pedigree when it comes to winning trophies. The England manager's position will be his first experience of international management but at 61 years of age he has vast experience of football in Italy and Spain as well as competing in the top European club competitions.
As with the David Beckham situation at Real Madrid, he is not afraid to state his case where star players are concerned. Earlier in his career his problems at Roma centred on a dispute with their popular captain Francesco Totti and this alienated the fans.
His early appointment will enable him to assess England's players during the next nine months before they embark on qualification for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa with difficult games against Croatia and Ukraine.
