Fabio Capello is only the sixth manager to mastermind an England World Cup campaign. 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. After Milan, Capello went on to taste success with other continental giants such as Juventus, Roma and Real Madrid.
And Capello’s impact on the England team after taking over from Steve McLaren was immediate. 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. Nowhere was this new winning mentality more evident than in England’s impressive World Cup qualifying campaign. England won all their matches except one, notching up 34 goals in the process.
Highly respected by players, a strict disciplinarian and astute tactician, there are obvious parallels between the Three Lions’ current manager and Alf Ramsey. Both managers believed firmly that individual interests should be relinquished for the benefit of the team. On one occasion, when some of England’s biggest names failed to return before a 10.30 curfew, he did not hesitate to take action, the players returning to their hotel rooms to find their passports waiting for them on their beds.
Like Alf Ramsey, Bobby Robson, arguably the England manager remembered with the most affection, managed at Ipswich. However, Bobby Robson was probably better known for his man management skills than 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. During his time as England manager, Robson took England to two World Cups and at Italia ’90 led the Three Lions to their most successful World Cup campaign since 1966.
With his extraordinary CV and wealth of experience, it is hard to think of anyone better placed to try to emulate the achievements of Ramsey and Robson than Fabio Capello, together with the England captain Steven Gerrard.
Tags: Alf Ramsey, Fabio Capello, Steven Gerrard