Fabio Capello Names His Roster for England

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International friendly: France x England at Stade de France, Paris.
Time: 2100.

Goalkeepers

David James (Portsmouth), Paul Robinson (Tottenham Hotspur), Chris Kirkland (Wigan Athletic)

Defenders

Wayne Bridge (Chelsea), Wes Brown (Manchester United), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Glen Johnson (Portsmouth), Joleon Lescott (Everton), John Terry (Chelsea), Jonathan Woodgate (Tottenham Hotspur)

Midfielders

Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Gareth Barry (Aston Villa), Owen Hargreaves (Manchester United), Joe Cole (Chelsea), David Bentley (Blackburn Rovers), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), David Beckham: 100th cap if he plays (LA Galaxy), Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough)

Strikers

Michael Owen (Newcastle United), Wayne Rooney, (Manchester United), Peter Crouch (Liverpool), Theo Walcott (Arsenal)

The First Press Conference of Fabio Capello

Image courtesy of Realmadrid.pl.
Please click the image for the
BBC Sport interview link.

Yesterday, Fabio Capello was officially presented by the English Football Association. I am going to provide a BBC Sport link to watch the entire video, which lasted 35 minutes.

If anyone had doubts about who was the right man for the job, they need to watch a master at work. In this case, off of the pitch in the arena of the media wolves. :-)

Interview with Fabio Capello by BBC Sport

Click "Replay - Fabio Capello Interview." (Unfortunately, I can not link directly to the video.)

Here are a few excerpts:

"I will learn English in one month... It is important to communicate directly with the players."

"It is important for me to surround myself with those who speak the same language. I have done this wherever I have been, but I will include an English coach in my team."

"I never wanted to manage Italy. Those who know me well have known this for a long time."

"I need to change some of my behaviors, as do some of the English players."

"David and I had some contrasts, but he proved what a great professional and man he is."

"I need to watch all of the tapes from Euro 2008 qualification. Then I will meet with each of the players to determine what went wrong."

"They need to have more pride to wear the England shirt."

"I hope to meet Italy in the WC 2010 final in South Africa... I am honored to be the manager of England, but also respect Italian football a great deal and was proud to be a former player for the National Team."

Fabio Capello: New England Manager

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Realmadrid.pl.

Please click the image to read my commentary on Soccerlens.

Fabio Capello Comments About the England Job During RAI Broadcast

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Click the image to watch an UEFA.com
interview with Mister Capello.

During today's RAI telecast of Italy x Faroe Islands, Fabio Capello made an interesting response to a question by his broadcast partner, Marco Civoli.

At the time, I wasn't certain if he were serious or not. I have heard Mr. Capello broadcast a few times, and he appears to have a dry sense of humor. He is also a very insightful commentator.

The comment was made at the start of the second half. At the time, England was losing, 0 x 2, to Croatia at Wembley Stadium.

CAPELLO SI OFFRE - Quando mancavano ancora 45' alla fine delle partite Fabio Capello si è detto pronto a subentrare a McClaren sulla panchina dell'Inghilterra: "Io c.t. dell'Inghilterra? Sarebbe un'impresa, una bella prova da superare e avrei l'età giusta". Così Capello ha risposto ad una domanda del telecronista Rai, Marco Civoli, durante il commento di Italia-Isole Far Oer.

Capello Offers Himself

When 45 minutes were left from the end of the game, Fabio Capello said he was ready to take over for McClaren on the English bench.

"Me the coach of England?" It would be an enterprise, a great test to overcome and I would have the right age." In this manner, Capello responded to a question from the RAI broadcaster, Marco Civoli, during the commentary of Italy x Faroe Islands."

Source: "English Drama: Out
Sweden and Turkey Pass Through."
Gazzetta dello Sport, 21 November 2007.

Notes (23 November)

• Mr. Capello has expressed his interest to English media about the job.
  
• Jose' Mourinho took himself out of the equation.
• Several English candidates do not want the job.
  
• According to Ladbrokes, he is 2:1 favorite for the job.
  
• If he lands the position, I believe that Gianfranco Zola would be an interesting choice as his second in command. Presently, Mr. Zola is the technical director of the Italian U-21 team. Mr. Capello speaks limited English. Zola is fluent, as also knows the English player pool quite well.
• David Beckham might be another bridge to his assimilation in England. Despite their differences earlier this year, Beckham holds Mr. Capello in high esteem.
  

Euro 2008 Qualifier: Ukraine 1 x Italia 2

This was Roberto Donadoni's twelfth game as head coach, and also marked his 12th different lineup. According to Marco Civoli of RAI Sports, he has selected 47 different players in his brief reign as the Azzurri manager. For this important game, he made five changes from the last match with France: Christian Panucci, Massimo Ambrosini, Simone Perrotta, Vincenzo Iaquinta, and Antonio Di Natale. Interestingly, Cristiano Lucarelli, who plays in Ukraine and supplied Donadoni with information about virtually half of the opposing team, joined Alex Del Piero in the terraces of the Olympic Stadium at Kiev. Coming into this tie, Italy had 17 points after 8 games. Ukraine had 13 after 7 games.

Italy used a 4-2-3-1 formation that was much more physically imposing than the one we saw on Saturday. Ukraine implemented a tight 4-5-1, and man-marked the Azzurri attackers. In the third minute, Andriy Shevchenko, on a well-taken free kick, grazed the crossbar. He had a few more chances, and was playing very well, along with his quick Ukrainian teammates. Italy, in the first 20 minutes, had only two clear goal-scoring chances with Antonio Di Natale, who spun around his marker, but could not complete the shot with accuracy. A few minutes later, Vincenzo Iaquinta missed a long-range shot.

Again, Sheva was dangerous on a free kick from about 35 meters. Gigi Buffon did well to parry the ball down and out of danger. In the 39th minute, against the run of play, a great cross by Andrea Pirlo was headed clinically into the right corner by Antonio Di Natale. The half ended with Italy ahead, although they were dominated by Ukraine. Offensively, they showed very little, but importantly, converted on their one good chance. Unfortunately, Fabio Cannavaro picked up a yellow card, and will miss the next game in October versus Georgia.

The second half could be summed up very concisely. Italy had two occasions to score a goal. Di Natale executed a diving header in the 47th minute, but a good save by Olexandr Shovkovskiy kept it out. He then scored on a breakaway from a perfect through ball by Max Ambrosini in the 77th. In between, Andriy Shevchenko intercepted a ball from a mistake by Andrea Barzagli, and only the best keeper in the world, Buffon, would have stopped his ensuing shot. A few minutes later, the Azzurri could not clear the ball in the box, and Sheva scored past Buffon in the 71st minute.

This was a hard-fought victory, and very important for the road to Austria/Switzerland. Especially since Scotland upset France in Paris to take the lead in Group B on 21 points. Italy is in second place with 20 points, and France is now third on 19.

After the game, Mister Donadoni embraced each one of his players. He had been under intense media scrutiny and criticism. His post-game comments to RAI Sports were very terse. "We played well and I'm proud of the boys. Scotland's result? That doesn't concern me now... This wasn't the last beach." The last phrase was in response to the Italian media using the term about his tenure. It refers to the film, "On The Beach," which was about survivors of a nuclear event.

Fabio Capello, a commentator for RAI Sports, had the following comments after the game:

"Against Hungary, we played for 70 minutes. Against France for 80, and tonight we played for 90. The team is growing, but we are still not dominating out on the pitch... Ukraine had great counter-attacks... The five changes helped the team. They were much better than against France. "

To view video highlights, please click here.

Fabio Capello Met With American Soccer Officials in London

According to The Sun, Fabio Capello, the former manager of Real Madrid, met with USSF officials on Thursday in London. The night before, the USA played a friendly against Sweden. Mr. Capello was providing color commentary in Budapest for RAI's coverage of the Italian friendly against Hungary.

"The out-of-work Italian was later forced to reveal he was in the capital to meet a delegation from the US Soccer Federation. Capello claims he has become an unwitting party to a week of turmoil at Tottenham.

Last night he said: 'I came to London because two weeks ago I agreed to meet the chairman and manager of the US national team who wanted my advice on a number of issues.

We had lunch for three hours at the Hilton Hotel. I was then approached by Mel Goldberg, who asked if he could talk to me and said he wanted to represent me in England.

We had a brief chat and when I went outside there were lots of paparazzi waiting and I realised there was something going on. But I never, never contacted Tottenham — nor did Tottenham contact me.'”

According to the Times of London, in a story co-authored by Matt Dickinson, their chief football writer, Capello was accompanied by his son. A lawyer.

"Capello was in London with his lawyer son, Pier Filippo, to meet representatives of the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) and had held brief talks afterwards with Mel Goldberg, the sports lawyer."

There has been speculation that Martin Jol, the Dutch coach of Tottenham Hotspurs, is on the hot seat at Whitehart Lane.

Last month, Mr. Capello admitted that he had been contacted by American interests; however, did not specify if it were the USSF and/or a specific MLS team. I translated a brief interview between Mr. Capello and the Gazzetta dello Sport. To read it, please click here.

Is Fabio Capello Tempted by American Soccer?

I just read a very short yet interesting article that appeared in today's edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport, which is the Wall Street Journal of Italian soccer.

"Dinamo Kiev e Lokomotiv mi hanno fatto pervenire delle proposte di lavoro interessanti - sottolinea Capello - ma le ho lasciate cadere. Mi hanno cercato anche dagli Stati Uniti ma devo pensarci: sarebbe una nuova esperienza che mi intrigherebbe non tanto per soldi, ma per vedere se qualcuno riesce a far decollare il calcio americano".

"Dynamo Kiev and Dynamo Lokomotiv have previewed their proposals of interesting work, underlined Capello, but I left them alone. They have inquired about me from the United States, but I'll need to think about it: it would be a new experience that would intrigue me not only for the money, but also if someone can make American soccer take off."

Don Fabio coached David Beckham last year at Real Madrid. In the past, he has stated that coaching the Italian National Team does not interest him. In this article, he didn't specify if it was the USSF or individual clubs who contacted him. If Mister Capello came to America, it would be a significant development. If a man who could coach any team in the world came here, it would be a very positive indicator for American soccer. We need to attract the best teachers and soccer minds, in order to develop the best players. Along with the next generation of coaches.

In Italian, the coach is called "Mister." As a historical reference, and a mark of respect, to the early English coaches who taught the game in Italy.

David Beckham Discusses Fabio Capello

In today's edition of the Gazzetta dello Sport, David Beckham spoke publicly about his former manager, Fabio Capello, who famously said "He will never play for Real Madrid again" in January. Below are a few excerpts that I have translated. The original interview apparently appeared in the Sunday edition of "The News of the World."

"Non criticherò mai Fabio Capello perché nutro grande rispetto nei suoi confronti, però mi sarei aspettato delle scuse da parte sua. Ha ammesso di essersi sbagliato nei miei confronti, ma non è mai venuto a dirmelo personalmente".

"I will never criticize Fabio Capello because I nurture a great respect in my dealings with him, but I had waited for an apology from his part. He admitted to have been wrong in dealing with me, but he never came to tell me personally."

"Capello è un tecnico dalla personalità molto forte - prosegue Beckham - sa quello che vuole e come ottenerlo. Merita rispetto per quello che ha fatto in carriera. Sono rimasto sorpreso quando ha dichiarato che non avrei più giocato per il Real Madrid. Lui è sempre stato molto corretto con me, e mi ha sempre spiegato le cose. Per questo le sue parole mi hanno stupito".

"Capello is a coach with a very strong personality, added Beckham, he knows what he wants and how to obtain it. He deserves respect for what he has achieved in his career. I remained surprised when he declared that I would never play for Real Madrid again. He was always very proper with me, and had always explained things to me. For this his words left me dumbfounded."

"Ho convinto Capello allo stesso modo in cui sono sempre riuscito a far ricredere le persone che parlano male di me - ha detto ancora il centrocampista -. Ho capito che dovevo dimostrare tutta la mia professionalitá, e alla fine Capello ha ammesso di essersi sbagliato nei miei confronti. Mi ha fatto piacere che abbia riconosciuto il suo errore, ma non è mai venuto da me a dirmi 'Mi dispiace David, ho sbagliato'. Ad ogni modo non mi sento di criticarlo, perché ho molto rispetto per lui."

"I convinced Capello the same way in that I have always been able regain the faith in persons who spoke badly of me, added the midfielder. I understood that I had to demonstrate all of my professionalism, and in the end Capello admitted that he was wrong in how he handled me. It pleased me that he had recognized his error, but he never came to me and said 'I'm sorry David, I was wrong.' In every way I don't feel that I have to criticize him, because I have a great deal of respect for him."

Very interesting commentary. To the best of my knowledge, this was the first time that Beckham has ever publicly provided his feelings on the subject. For Fabio Capello, one of the toughest coaches in the world, to admit publicly that his greatest mistake was mishandling Beckham, may have been his way to apologize personally.

Mister Capello was full of praise this week for two other players at Real Madrid. He called Ronaldo the best player that he has ever coached. And said that Antonio Cassano was the most talented Italian player in circulation. Strangely, he rarely played either of them, which made Ronaldo seek a transfer to AC Milan in January. Where "O Fenomeno" returned to his former self with great form.

It seems as if Don Fabio is saying good-bye in his own special way...

Real Madrid Has A Resurgence Of Team Spirit

Before yesterday's thrilling encounter with Espanyol, Fabio Capello, the much maligned yet respected manager of Real Madrid, said that his side had found team spirit. Since the media hype that surrounded the transfer of David Beckham to the LA Galaxy, along with Capello's firm declaration not to play the Englishman, Real Madrid suffered through a spell of turmoil.

In February, Capello admitted his mistake not to play Beckham. Since then, Real Madrid has been winning some very exciting games. Even if their defense leaves much to be desired. Yesterday, they were 1 x 3 down to Espanyol, courtesy of three first half strikes by Walter Pandiani. But the Merengues didn't lose composure, the fans at the Bernabeu didn't begin to whistle, and Capello made two strategic substitutions for the second half.

In stunning fashion, Real Madrid won the game at the death on a goal by the Argentine, Gonzalo Higuain, 4 x 3. Combined with today's draw between Barcelona and Betis, Real Madris sits alone atop La Liga with four games to go. A few months ago, that might have surprised even their most ardent followers.

"Gustar y golear" as my cousin in Argentina would say. ;-) As my Real Madrid friend, Miguel, has been telling me, never count out the men in the white shirts. Since 1902, very few teams in the world have won more domestic and international honors than Los Merengues.

Fabio Capello Loses His Self-Respect

It was a sad sight. Signor Fabio Capello, a veteran coach who has won everything at the club level (La Liga, Serie A, and the Champions League) with AC Milan, Real Madrid, AS Roma, and Juventus, was photographed yesterday giving the middle finger to two "fans." In the Internet age, the image was sent around the world at the speed of light.

Apparently, two fans have targeted Don Fabio since his first stint at Madrid ten years ago. "I recognized their voices." He must have very good hearing. El Estadio Bernabeu can hold about 90,000 passionate and raucous fans. But Mister Capello, despite all of his experience, had to lower himself to words uttered by imbeciles.

It has been a tough week for Capello. A few days ago, David Beckham signed with the LA Galaxy. Then Capello told him that he would never wear the Real Madrid shirt again. Yesterday, for the home game against Saragoza, Beckham was seen cheering on his teammates from the stands with his mother, Sandra. Capello also gave marching orders to Ronaldo and Antonio Cassano.

Capello was a great player in the 60s and 70s who starred for Juventus and AS Roma. Along with the Italian National Team. I saw him play once in person against Pele'. He was a hard-nosed player, but very precise and organized. His coaching style has reflected his playing persona.

But as I look again at the image, it is still distressing. Only we alone can give value to words. Whether they are good or bad. In the sporting world, where coaches and players are under intense scrutiny at all times, one can argue that he was human. He responded the way most of us would if we had reached a boiling point. But a coach as experienced as Capello had to recognize the consequences of his actions. In an arena as large as the Bernabeu, there was no way that the Madrid faithful could have known that the insult was not directed at all of them. For that reason, we must hold Mister Capello to a higher standard. Coaches and players at his level don't earn millions to behave this way.

Today, he apologized, but one can't erase the image so easily. "Respond intelligently, even to unintelligent treatment." Lao Tzu