Fabio Capello has joined a long list of unsuccessful England managers after he resigned from the position just four months before the Euro championships begin.
His position as England manager was untenable following his backing of sacked England captain John Terry, accused of racially abusing QPR’s Anton Ferdinand. He also lacked strong support from England’s FA.
Capello’s departure paves the way for Tottenham manager Harry Rednapp to take over after he was cleared of tax evasion by a jury.
Capello will be remembered for coaching England to a disastrous 2010 World Cup, where England played some of the worst football from a top contender vying for glory.
There was the goalkeeping error by Robert Green against the USA to surrender a 1-1 draw, the scoreless draw against Algeria, and of course the fourth round against Germany, in which England were smashed 4-1.
England have been waiting a long time to find a manager who is capable of producing something similar to what Sir Alf Ramsey did in 1966: winning England a World Cup.
Last weekend, Simon Barnes wrote a piece called “England football caught in a cycle of failure.” He said there was too much expectation on any England manager, especially in World Cups. Barnes was spot on when he summised “an England manager is expected to win the World Cup. In other words, the minimum requirement for success is a miracle.”
While there’s been a lot of emphasis on England’s manager, I still think it comes down to what sort of players England has produced. Did England have the quality of players to win in recent World Cups? No.
Let’s concentrate on the period from 1986 onwards.
In Mexico ’86, the quarter-final showdown saw England face Argentina. On June 22, played in front of 114,580 people, Argentina won 2-1, with Maradona scoring twice, while Gary Linekar scored a late one for the English.
The two goals that Maradona scored were a contrast to say the least. The first was the Hand of God, the second the Goal of the Century. We all know how those goals were scored. The first came from dubious tactics, the second from unbelieveable skill.
The English will always believe they were unlucky with the Hand of God. But Maradona’s second goal, when he beat six or seven English players from halfway, highlights what England has been lacking in their players.
High quality, technically skilled footballers in the midfield, who can not only dribble past defenders and provide a good finish, but can create and not panic while in possession. I’m not saying England should produce a Maradona, as his like don’t come along very often. But you get my drift.
The Cups that Brazil won in USA ’94 and Korea/Japan 2002 were secured by players like Romario, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Robeto Carlos and so on.
France won their home World Cup in ’98 led by the sublime Zinedine Zidane, with a great support cast in Henry, Desailly, Thuram, and Viera.
Italy won Germany ’06 by getting back to their traditional catenaccio best, but they still had quality that could open up defences, with Andrea Pirlo the main architect.
Spain won South Africa 2010, with their terrific tiki-taka display of football from a team whose majority came from Barcelona. Players like Iniesta, Xavi and David Villa were instrumental.
The exception to the rule is a team like West Germany winning Italia ’90. I don’t think their players were incredibly skillful compared to those players I’ve mentioned. They had players like Klinnsman and Matthaus with Beckenbauer as their manager. But when it comes to World Cups, Germany are the best tournament team going around.
In a nutshell, England didn’t have the quality or mindset to win a World Cup. The two tournaments where England have been most successful were the 1990 World Cup in Italy, and Euro ’96 when England hosted the tournament. On both occassions, Paul Gascoigne was pivotal.
As talent goes, Gascoigne had more ability than the likes of Beckham, Scholes, Lampard or Gerrard. And Gazza could deliver when its required, while others have gone missing when the knock-out stages commenced. For me, that’s where it counts.
As for discipline off the field, well, we all know that Gascoigne went off the rails. That’s a tragic story.
Anyhow, as far as the football manager is concerned, he will try to get the best out of his players. He’ll have his own spin as far as tactical formations are concerned. But at the end of the day, it comes down to what cattle the manager has to work with.
Could someone like Sir Alex Ferguson change England’s fortunes? Maybe not. His Manchester United side couldn’t stop Barcelona in the Champions’ League final last May.
In club football you buy a player to improve your team. A national team manager can’t buy players, he has to make do with what that country has.
If Harry Rednapp does take the England job, he can’t bring Luka Modric into the side.
When England won the World Cup on home soil in ’66, England had a great array of players like Sir Bobby Charlton, Sir Geoff Hurst, Bobby Moore and Gordon Banks.
But that triumph happened a long time ago. Football has become more professional and more countries are competitive. To put it in perspective, that ’66 win happened three years after JFK was assassinated. Next year, it will be the 50th anniversary of that fateful November day in Dallas.
If the English fans and media could accept that their players are not of the quality to expect a World Cup win, then perhaps it may lower the expectations and pressure on the English manager.
England should concentrate on producing players who could change a match, like a Maradona, Pirlo, and Iniesta can, rather than placing all their emphasis on finding the next Sir Alf Ramsey.
For what its worth, I think Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers is a great prospect for an England manager one day.
I wonder if Capello would’ve resigned from the Brazil team of 1970?
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