Equipped with the kind of record that speaks for itself and nearly two decades of managerial experience, Fabio Capello is the sixth manager to attempt to lead England to World Cup glory. The Italian as a reputation as one of the best tacticians around and has won domestic titles with every club he’s ever managed. Capello will surely have to call on these years of experience at the highest level as he seeks to plot England’s steady course through the rounds in South Africa.
He began his managerial career at AC Milan in the early nineties where he led a squad crammed with talent to the Scudetto four times in five seasons. Capello has also enjoyed successful spells at Juventus, Real Madrid and Juventus.
When he took over from Steve McLaren as England manager, Capello brought his years of experience to bear. He stamped his authority by introducing more intensive training and a number of new rules aimed at improving team spirit and making the squad more focused on winning. This new winning mentality made itself manifest with impressive results in England’s highly successful World Cup qualifying campaign. England won all their matches except one, notching up 34 goals in the process.
Given the level of respect Capello commands from players and his impressive knowledge of the game, it is tempting to draw parallels between him and England’s most successful manager, Alf Ramsey. Like England’s current boss, Ramsey thought the team was more important than the individual and refused to brook the notion of some players enjoying a special status. On a 1964 tour of Brazil, a number of England’s players failed to stick to an agreed curfew, returning to their rooms to find their passports waiting for them on the beds.
Like Alf Ramsey, Bobby Robson, arguably the England manager remembered with the most affection, managed at Ipswich. But Robson was a different kind of manager to both Capello and Ramsey. He enjoyed success at some of Europe’s top clubs, including Barcelona and Porto, motivating his players with his infectious enthusiasm for the game he loved. Robson led England to two World Cup Finals, and at Italia ’90 helped the Three Lions to one of their most successful tournaments since the triumph of 1966.
With his glittering CV and years of experience, Fabio Capello looks well-placed to help Steven Gerrard and the England side repeat the success of Ramsey and Robson.
