The sheer volume of interest and sense of ownership most people, some not even football fans, feel towards the national team means any choice divides opinion like the letter N. But for the first time in a long time the FA are almost above criticism in the process that has led to them choosing Fabio Capello as the new man at the healm. In stark contrast to the current establishment’s bumbling efforts last time they have moved objectively, and reasonably swiftly, and ultimately appointed a first class candidate.

As Sven Goran Eriksson said this week it was almost impossible for them to fail because, unlike the previous two times at least, all the names on the eventual short list were of the highest order. Mourinho would have been everything an England manager should be in the current climate – bullish with his players and the media, a great motivator but also someone with a clear tactical plan and a serial obsession with winning.

Likewise Marcello Lippi would have brought an unparalleled track-record to the role and like Felipe Scolari, who used the knowledge of his World Cup winning success with Brazil to turn under-achieving Portugal into Euro 2004 runners-up, his outstanding experience with Italy in 2006 would have been of huge benefit to us.

And then there’s Capello. After Jose withdrew his interest, the Italian was the outstanding choice in my view, just edging out Lippi on account of the extra hunger he will have to succeed having never managed internationally before. Nine titles in 15 seasons with four different clubs, one European Cup, and two Champions League finals, as well as the benefit of 32 international caps as player himself.

And still fans, players, managers and officials the nation wide have found room to criticise via the ill-thought out basis of his nationality. Now these people should not be lambasted for their views, nor shamelessly labelled as xenophobes or bigots as they undoubtedly will be in some quarters. They are not. They simply have a commendable passion for their country that is blurring their vision.

When Gareth Southgate says he believes international football should be about the best people from each country competing against each other, from the kit man up, and that the England boss should be English he is not being racist. It is a valid argument but one that is ultimately weakened by the long pause that follows his statement. The pause where Southgate would like to insert the names of three or four English managers who are up to the job… but he can’t.

Paul Ince and Tony Adams went a step further, but ultimately embarrassed themselves, by trying to fill that gap with names like Steve Coppell, Alan Curbishly, Sam Allardyce and even Glenn Hoddle or Terry Venables. The latter two were extremely good England managers, ousted not for footballing reasons by an overzealous FA at a time when their vision might have taken England onto the top level of international football, rather than the middle tier we frustratingly find ourselves in all too often.  But their time has gone, and while Capello has continued to move from club success to club success in his career Venables and Hoddle have never built on the promising starts they both made to theirs.

Ince’s laughable claim that while Capello’s CV was awe inspiring Hoddle’s was equally impressive falls down when you compare Fabio’s nine titles with Hoddle’s solitary Carling Cup runners-up gong. Likewise the news of Capello’s impending arrival was a blessed relief for many as rumours had started to rumble about Alan Curbishly being Sir Trevor Brooking’s preferred choice should we ‘go English.’ How the West Ham boss got anywhere near the shortlist the last time round utterly bemuses me. Here is a man who team’s operate with no definable style of play, who enjoyed worryingly anti-climatic lulls in the second half of every season he managed, who never got anywhere near the latter stages of a cup competiton and who has a track record for losing his temper with his biggest named players. Forgive me for being a tad relieved that we did not have to turn to him in our hour of need.

That is not to say of course that domestic success is pre-requisite to international achievement. Raymond Domenech took France to the World Cup final after 11 years as under 21 coach and Franz Beckenbauer won the thing with Germany in his first management job.  It is more about the attitude that winning breads. If a strict nationality law had been applied by FIFA  who would we have gone for? Harry Redknapp (who should at least have been on the shortlist last time round ahead of Curbishly and probably McClaren) would be the only choice worth making and would probably have done a decent job.

He would have got us playing in a more aesthetically pleasing way and boosted the confidence of our apparently beleaguered troops but could you seriously see Harry taking us any further than a quarter final? Probably not and for the simple reason that because of the objective honesty that makes so many people like him he wouldn’t expect to.

The big difference between Capello and any of the English candidates is that simply being named England boss will not be the highlight of his career. Winning something with them will. If Coppell, Curbishly or even Redknapp had been afforded the honour, they like McClaren and all those before him would have seen it as the pinnacle, before a ball had even been kicked.

Capello will not do that. He will not be satisfied until he has added to his trophy haul and unlike so many would consider a quarter final or semi-final as failure. That is why he is the right man for the job at this point in time. Because England demand success, because he will not be satisfied until he gets it, because he will not let technically inferior players, big egos, meddling club managers, playing conditions or press criticism get in the way of his single minded aim of adding international honours to his glittering CV.

Coppell quite rightly raised some legitimate concerns about the lack of options being down to the chronic lack of opportunities for English managers to progress into big jobs. It is ironic that Cappello finds himself in the position he is today because his first job was being named manager of the finest Milan side in memory after a few years as Arrigo Sacchi’s number two. Likewise the then unknown and relatively unsuccessful Lippi was given his chance at giants Juventus after a potted history with lower level sides. Carlo Ancellotti got a similar chance at Milan and Roberto Mancini was appointed Inter boss on the back of a couple of years at a struggling Lazio.

That would never happen in England and herein lies part of the long-term problem. Other countries recognise talent early and give it a chance. Whether the problem in England is because we are not recognising talent or that there simply isn’t that much of it is a debate for another time. But for now the immediate conundrum is who is the best man to lead England and after Mourinho revealed it wasn’t going to be him the FA have, this time, got ithe decision quite right. 
 
Swanny