Fabio Capello is set to name his England Captain in a meeting two days before next weeks friendly match against the Czech Republic.
“I will announce the captain two days before the game,” said the Italian. “I will speak with the captain just a moment before I tell the rest of the squad, then everyone else will find out.”
image via DailyMail
And so it goes…the Beckham - Capello saga takes another turn. Only a couple years ago Capello famously banished Beckham to training alone after Becks made his announcement to come the LA Galaxy. Then, Beckham gets recalled to the squad and goes on to help Real Madrid win La Liga before both Beckham and Capello bounce out. Now Capello has recalled Beckham once again and made him a part of his provisional squad to take on France. Does this mean Beckham will hit the century mark and get his 100th cao in the friendly with the French? Maybe…but it does look like Becks is back in Capello’s plans, at least for a bit. I for one think it will be great to see Beckham get his 100th cap and maybe contribute to the england squad just a bit longer, and once again defy the naysayers.
image via SkyRock
When purchasing Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Ajax, Fabio Capello knew the talent the young Swede had, but also his temperament. Since then, Zlatan has gone on to star at Inter as Capello, who won last year at Real Madrid is now the manager of England after Juventus’ drop to Serie B in 2006 . In today’s SkySports, Ibrahimovic gives his opinion on the Don and how they used to call him The Psychologist for his ability to handle players egos.
It might be for only one match, but when England is walking out of the tunnel at Wembley tomorrow, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard will be at the front. While John Terry has to be dissapointed, Gerrard’s pure work ethic and attacking ability is the perfect example of the type of two way players England will need to succeed under Fabio “The Don” Capello.
With Emile Heskey and Gabby Agbonlahor both going down in their last weekend match before England camp, Jermaine Defoe was called back into the mix for the “Don” Fabio Capello. Guess getting that transfer in and scoring on your debut for Portsmouth wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
He’s finally gotten the shout for the first team and you can expect Gabby Agbonlahor to make the most of it. Yes, he’s still in the U-21’s with Stuart “Pyscho” Pearce, but under Martin O’Neill he’s flourished and was named today to Capello’s final 23 for England’s friendly against Switzerland.
image via SoccerLens
Everyone knows by now that DVB hasn’t been called up for England’s friendly against Switzerland, February 6th at Wembley. But neither has Jermaine Defoe, Darren Bent, Paul Robinson nor Joe Hart. While the man who occupies the #7 shirt for England has been left out, it truly isn’t that much of a surprise. Yes, heart warming gestures are always appreciated and there’s no doubt he’s fit physically, but did anyone think that Capello’s first order of business for his first match in charge of England was going to be anything less than setting the standard and drawing the line in the sand for years to come? Remember, we’re talking about an England team that has consistently disappointed and never was there a doubt which names were on the call up sheet in the last 8 years.
The biggest and only roadblock that stood in front of DVB was the fact that it was the off-season for MLS and with a provisional 30 man roster of players that are not just training week in and week out, but getting Premiership, FA Cup, UEFA Cup and Champions League matches, he was still recovering from possibly the worst string of injuries in his career.
So he’s been left out. What’s next, does he mouth off to the press? No. Does he stop playing? No. If there was ever a man that set the standard for proving himself, while keeping his head down and getting on with it, it’s David Beckham. Don’t for a minute think that #23 for the LA Galaxy won’t be flying around the Home Depot Center, not just with something to prove to Capello, but to every man/woman/child that’s ever paid to watch him play. He plays for his teammates, his family and whatever crest is on his chest, not for the individual accolades. If that were the case, well then he would have retired long ago.
According to reports, Capello hasn’t ruled him out for the future, just for the Switzerland match. If I’m reading through the lines correctly, Beckham will get his 100th Cap, just not the heart warming way we wanted.
image via Kingsbury
While he’ll still be gaffer for the U-21’s, Stuart Pearce Aka the Pyscho has taken an Assistant role with Fabio Capello’s staff. While learning from one of the best, Pearce’s main objective will be to get England to the 2009 U-21 European Championships and continue to bring along young talent like Theo Walcott and Gabriel Agbonlahor.
