The Italian’s resignation will be felt elsewhere
After 42 games as England manager, Fabio Capello resigned from his post yesterday with immediate effect after a disagreement with the Football Association over the John Terry captaincy issue. It was a bold move by the FA to appoint the Italian on such a lucrative deal back in December 2007, and on reflection he can proudly boast on his remarkable CV that he was second to none when it came to getting results as England boss. He will be remembered as the man who could safely navigate England through qualifying for major tournaments, something previous manager Steve McClaren failed to achieve in his short reign, but ultimately failed when it really mattered. He was unable to rekindle the English public’s original love affair with him after the disastrous world cup campaign in South Africa in 2010.
The Italian will not find himself out of work for long, and his availability will only add to the pressure of under fire managers. His most likely destination will be back to his homeland, but alternative financially rewarding roles are also likely to be of interest. Russia? Qatar? Either way, good riddance Fabio; we have a rebuilding project to commence. Thanks for jumping ship.
Capello was far from the only manager in world football facing voices of discontent. Arsene Wenger continues to stubbornly ignore demands to use any investment on his current squad, astounding his fans and experts alike as they face yet another season without a trophy. At Chelsea, Russian owner Roman Abramovich is growing impatient with Andre Villas-Boas’s results on the pitch and will not hesitate to act on the matter.
In Spain, Jose Mourinho is creating havoc where he sees fit and has expressed his desire to return to management in the Premier League, while Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola is looking at a move to Italy according to his former Spanish teammate Gaizka Mendieta. If teams of this calibre are in the market for a new manager and exceptional circumstances were to occur, the transfer activity of renowned managerial specialists may cause Sky’s Jim White to become even more shocked and hysterical when the carousel is in full flow this summer. Indeed, at international level, managerial departures often follow at the end of a major tournament and we could see even more high profile vacancies opening up. Someone may even offer Rafael Benitez a job.
Anyway, let’s place the focus back on England. Hands up all those who wish to put themselves in contention for the top job? Let’s see… as of yet, no one has flung themselves at the post, but they all hope to see Spurs boss Harry Redknapp offered the chance. In fact it is not only managers who are publicly backing Mr Redknapp for the post; players, former players, journalists, Redknapp’s potential England captain Peter Crouch, analysts, the tea lady, Arsenal fans and even rival applicants all hope to see him appointed. The FA must implement all their powers of persuasion to convince the outstanding candidate to consider taking the job while his chairman at Tottenham Hotspur, Daniel Levy, will prove an obstacle. Levy is a shrewd negotiator and is notoriously difficult to bargain with, thus the FA have been warned.
So we’ve only just shown Fabio the door but it seems no one is chomping at the bit to take the helm. In all likelihood, Redknapp will drag himself away from North London after winning the FA Cup and the Premier League before leading England to European Championship glory and being knighted in the New Years Honours List by her Majesty. And all this from a man who almost ended up in prison over a story about a trip to Monaco and his beloved pet dog. If he achieves all of the above, ‘Arry really will require further investigation.
Elsewhere, Mourinho will accept the Tottenham job, Wenger will head to Madrid, Guardiola will realise he cannot possibly do any better than Barcelona unless he left for Swansea or Spain and Chelsea will replace Villas-Boas with Hiddink. Even though these suggestions are wildly exaggerated, Arsenal remain too difficult to predict and will most likely appoint the man the French hope will be offered the England job; Raymond Domenech. It should make for an exciting summer.
