Rot in the Roots of England: Why Capello Will Make No Difference

First, I'd like to congratulate Fabio Capello on his appointment as England manager this week.

My fears of Jose Mourinho were, delightfully, dissolved—although I find it hard to digest the lack of an Englishman anywhere in the new setup, and that is the next problem the FA faces. More on that later.

I have no doubt that Capello will be a better manager than McClaren or Sven—he has more passion for the game and more power within it than either of them. While we may not always see entertaining football under him, tactically he is not only astute, but decisive. His stints at AC Milan, Roma and Juventus are testament to his skill and dedication to football.

However, this crisis has highlighted some problems and issues within English football that I feel we all need to take into account, and examine logically. So...

1. The England Manager must have managed a "big four" club or similar.

This surely has to be the biggest headache for me. With Arsenal and Manchester United keeping the same manager for over 30 years combined, it simply has not been possible for any young English manager to take over the reins at either club. 

Liverpool and Chelsea have both seen foreign managers come and go over the last ten years. Roy Evans was joint manager at Liverpool with Houllier until 1998, when Houllier took over as the stand-alone boss. Chelsea have not had an English manager since Glen Hoddle in 1993 (ignoring caretaker-boss Rix, who managed for only two games, winning one and losing one).

The fact of the matter is: Wenger and Ferguson are good—therefore, no change there—whereas Liverpool and Chelsea are "quick fix" teams who'll take the best in Europe. I have no problem with this, as long as people don't then go on to say that English managers aren't good enough.

We should look at the limited opportunites of top jobs for English managers, and judge them how they've coped with what's been available, not on the fashionability of the clubs they've managed.

You'd never see the equivalent attitude in another country: "Sacres bleu! You never managed Paris-St Germain, you cannot be our national manager! Pardon, Monsieur!"

2. The England Manager must have international experience.

This one kept on for about a week until Mourinho popped up, claiming he wanted—then didn't want—the job. Very few good managers have actually played football at the highest levels, and it is very rare that exceptional players become good managers. Roy Keane has done very well in the short time he's managed Sunderland—but remember, he's learnt from the best.

The moral here? A good manager doesn't need to be experienced on the pitch, nor does success as a player actually make them better.  There may be some notable exceptions, but let's look at the best two examples—Wenger and Ferguson. End of story!

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