Yet still the Italian tactician is being slated by the media for his poor English, handling of the captaincy issue and being unfavourably compared to daft waiter Manuel in sitcom Fawlty Towers. Don Fabio claims he only needs 99 words to speak with his players. He probably requires just two from his dictionary to communicate with the English media. Hint, the second one is off.
The clamour for an English manager continues unabated though. Bookmaker William Hill prices the next permanent boss to be a born and bred Englishman @ 1.12 compared to 5.50 against another foreigner.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Redknapp is the favourite to succeed Capello in the job that has often been referred to as a poisoned chalice. Aside from the Spurs boss, none of the other leading contenders are worth getting too excited about.
Unemployed Martin O’Neill was turned down for the job in favour of Steve McClaren in 2006. Besides, he was born in Northern Ireland, which may not satisfy the patriotic English press corps. The leading foreign contender is Jose Mourinho (15.0) who upset Capello this week by saying he turned down the England gig in late 2007.
So Redknapp is a banker then? He’s as English as jellied eels and Downing Street and has worked wonders at Tottenham Hotspur. At 64 he’s the right age to have a crack at international management for the first time.
Haven’t we been here before though? Glenn Hoddle was tipped to be the England boss for the next 20 years when he succeeded Terry Venables in 1996. One controversial interview on a non-football matter sealed his fate in 1999.
Then as now the English media wanted the people’s choice. The great entertainer, a manager who punched above his weight in the Premier League – Kevin Keegan.
The FA’s appointment of Keegan was designed to placate the media and it was a disaster. England rocked up at Euro 2000 after qualifying via the back door with Keegan proclaiming “we’re here to win it”. The Three Lions were home before the postcards.
Keegan infamously resigned in the Wembley toilets after England were beaten by Germany in the final game at the old stadium. His candour about not being up to the job in the post-mortem was admirable after a reign almost as dismal as the awful weather in London that day.
So England went down the foreign route in hiring Sven Goran Eriksson, who boasted an impressive CV. Like most England managers, Svennis enjoyed a honeymoon period and was practically knighted after the 5-1 demolition of Germany in 2001.
The Swede took part in ridiculous commercials and put his name to a classical music CD before World Cup 2002. Of course the finals cemented Sven’s legacy as the Three Lions were unable to get the ball off 10-man Brazil after taking the lead courtesy of Michael Owen.
Gareth Southgate remarked that England needed a Winston Churchill style speech at half-time but instead got an Iain Duncan Smith rendition. This is the same Southgate who is fourth favourite to succeed Capello, the same Southgate who has been without a job since being sacked by Championship Middlesbrough in 2009. The mind boggles.
Sven’s so called lack of passion on the sideline was cited as one of his failures. Now Capello is being criticised for being too animated and giving Stuart Pearce chest pains by elbowing him in the chest due to his regular bouts of rage.
Managing England can do that to you. Erikkson’s record was superb, losing just a single qualifier during five years in charge. He took England to three straight quarter-finals in major tournaments, losing two of them on penalites.
In truth, reaching the last eight of a major tournament is England’s natural level… if that. One World Cup victory on home soil 45 years ago doesn’t suggest that the Three Lions are one of the game’s leading contenders.
Of course they will always be among the favourites for any big competition. Hill’s have England as fourth favourites for Euro 2012.
You’d be better off keeping your money safely in your pocket instead of backing England to win anything. A safer bet is Redknapp to take up the job next @ 2.50. It’s a matter of when not if the current Spurs boss assumes the reins from the much criticised Don Fabio.
He’ll enjoy the honeymoon period, crack jokes with the press and be the antidote to Capello’s sterility. Don’t expect England to win a major tournament though, regardless of who is in charge.
A few one liners and pals in the media will only get you so far before the inevitable backlash occurs. Just ask Kevin Keegan.
Continue reading here:
Fabio Capello On Borrowed Time As England Manager While Harry Redknapp Lurks