England: 10 Things Fabio Capello Must Do to Win Euro 2012

Fabio Capello is a bit of an enigma. We can all see there is an ample amount of talent for England to seriously threaten the best sides in the world, yet there are so many ideas that the Italian just refuses to even experiment with.

Here are 10 things that Capello must address for England to start thinking about glory at the Euro 2012.

Settle on a Formation That He Will Be Prepared to Use Against the Best

This mainly concerns Capello's constant dithering over which formation really suits the England team.

It is not helping the Three Lions' cause when they have to adapt to new formations depending on the opposition.

I would suggest that very few sides in the world can instantly adapt to a different formation and maintain their optimum performance.

England just do not have the talent pool to keep on switching, so Capello has two options.

Either settle on the formation that the best players at his disposal feel most comfortable in, or select a formation that he would feel happy to use against Montenegro as well as Spain.

Pick the 4-3-3 and Stick with It

When the best sides in the country who contribute the majority of the national team's players utilise a 4-3-3 formation many times during a season, then it must make sense to let the England players lineup in a formation they know.

This would eliminate a tactical dilemma and allow the manager to focus on fine tuning other areas of weakness.

People may argue that the players suit a 4-4-2 formation, but what also needs to be considered is that the best sides in Europe are all using a three man central midfield currently, or an adaption of that (4-2-3-1).

Spain, Germany, France, Netherlands and Italy all have three players at least in the middle for the majority of their games.

There is an argument that England should be focusing on a formation best for them, which incidentally, I still think is the 4-3-3, but England's talent pool is not good enough to beat all of these sides whilst conceding an extra man in the middle of the pitch.

Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard for a number of years and Wayne Rooney's career best form have all been in this system, and given that these are England's only world class players (who are affected depending on which formation is chosen, e.g. Ashley Cole will always play at left back), Capello must focus on bringing out their club form in a similar environment for their country. 

Pick Rooney as a Lone Striker and Persevere with It

When Wayne Rooney was in the form of his life in the second half of the 2009/10 season, he was almost unstoppable.

Rooney scored 19 goals in 17 appearances for Man Utd from the beginning of 2010 until his fateful injury in the Champions League against Bayern Munich.

He did so, playing as a lone striker, and although it is clear that he can be a top performer in any position, England must realise he is the priority for this side. Everything else should become a secondary thought as long as Rooney is playing at his very best.

He can do this in the 4-3-3 as the lone striker, and Capello must have the patience to leave him there and pick and choose the players around him.

Keep Faith with Frank Lampard as His Chelsea Form Proves He Is Still World Class

There seems to be a campaign to force Capello to omit Frank Lampard from future England squads so that the team can evolve and that everything will be fine once we trust our next generation of stars.

The arrogance from England supporters to think that they can just replace one of England's very few world class players over the last decade is remarkable.

The players that are tipped to replace him may be very promising in the short time they have come through their clubs at Premier League level, but the vast majority of those (including Jack Wilshere) have won nothing or have not proven themselves on a consistent basis at the very top level.

Lampard has done so for numerous years and deserves more respect.

Capello would be a fool to think Lampard cannot contribute in some way in the immediate future.

A hat trick last weekend for Chelsea against Bolton showed just how brilliant he is at timing his runs in to the penalty area before scoring goal after goal.

Lampard may be alternated with a fit Steven Gerrard, who, incidentally, is certainly not fit consistently these days.

This is the least Capello should do in incorporating Lampard or a fit Steven Gerrard (and therefore, one of them off the bench in the same role) to operate as the most advanced central midfielder.

It would unwise of Capello to discard such a brilliant player now until he can truly say he has exhausted all possibilities of replicating Lampard's form in an England shirt.

Whilst Lampard continues to defy the logic with displays of the ilk against Bolton and Valencia, Capello must keep on trying. 

Select One Holding Midfielder and One Only

As mentioned before, if England are to replicate the formation that most of the best national sides in the world are using right now in the 4-3-3, then they need to fine tune it to the talent on offer.

The ideal combination in centre midfield is to have an attack minded player capable of joining up with attack, a la Lampard or Gerrard, with two slightly more withdrawn players.

Now traditionally, it would help the likes of Lampard and Gerrard for the national side to use two specialist destroyers in front of the back four, but the problem is, England are not blessed with those.

Gareth Barry has been shown up to be very ordinary in against the very best sides in that role and fails to offer anything in terms of slick passing or guile around the penalty area.

Therefore, it is nonsensical to combine him with a player who is actually better equipped to do his job and more.

Scott Parker would seem to be the ideal candidate to do this job, as Owen Hargreaves will have to have a superb season to force his way back in, and it would seem that somebody like Jack Rodwell, talented as he is, is not the type of player we hoped he would be, as he seems to be enjoying a more advanced role for Everton.

Next to Parker needs to be a disciplined player who will allow the more advanced midfielder in Lampard or Gerrard to push on.

Wilshere would seem to be favourite if he can recover in time after his injury or somebody of a similar calibre.

Michael Carrick and Tom Huddlestone certainly spring to mind.

Either way, Capello needs to have a progression from his holding midfielder to his attacking midfielder instead of utilising an extra player such as Barry in a role he can only half fulfil.  

Choose Between Richards and Walker for the Right Back Spot Now

Perhaps a prisoner of the moment, but Capello finds another position where he needs to settle on quickly.

Right back is up for grabs after Glen Johnson, despite injury, has failed to breed confidence whenever he has played in this role.

Chris Smalling and Phil Jones have played there, out of position, receiving many plaudits, but Capello cannot afford to rely on a player who not only is playing out of position but also cannot guarantee their spot for their club in that position.

Despite the fact that he will likely evolve in to a superb centre back, Micah Richards is certainly capable of holding down the right back spot for Man City this season and should definitely be the front runner for this spot in the team.

Due to the opportunity to showcase his talent against many of the opponents England will face next summer in the Champions League, Richards has the edge on the highly talented Kyle Walker.

Walker should also be considered ahead of Jones and Smalling given he is also more of a natural at that position and seemingly a definite starter for Spurs.

Whoever Capello decides upon must be given assurances now as a back four needs consistency to be able to perform solidly over time.

Get the Ball Wide Fast

One of England's strengths is their numerous wide players who possess great pace.

Granted, many of whom are frustrating with their final end product, but the pace is undeniably a weapon that needs to be utilised.

The likes of Ashley Young and Adam Johnson have pace in abundance and the capability to provide good service to Rooney.

If England get the ball wide quickly enough, it will stretch sides and allow numerous opportunities for Rooney and an arriving midfielder to help themselves to many goals.

Forget Form Now, Settle on an XI for Euro 2012

One of Capello's many characteristics that are flawed is his insistence on picking players on form.

This is all well and good in the preliminary stages of becoming a manager, but now is the time to give far greater assurances to most of the players who he wants to start.

If he continues with his policy, that instability will breed rapidly in the ranks and create nervousness when the players step on to the pitch.

Also, it is undeniable that there will be at least five or six players who make late challenges to board the plane to the Euros.

Capello should resist the temptation to do so, as the question that should be levelled at those who do should be, where was your form for the rest of the year?

One, perhaps two at a push, late changes would be acceptable, but if Capello is confident in choosing 11 players now, then he should provide assurances to as many as possible that he is counting on them for next summer.

As undoubtedly, there will be several England starters who hit a rough patch of form leading in to the tournament, but it is better to bring back the good form by convincing those applicable that they have the capability to rediscover their form with a stable England set up.

Make a Decision on Whether Ferdinand Is Your Man or Not

Rio Ferdinand, when fit, is undoubtedly the best partner that England's captain John Terry can have.

His fitness is uncertain, though, and Capello needs to make a big call.

It is perfectly acceptable to rely on somebody as good as Ferdinand, despite his fitness problems, as if there is a chance he will make the tournament, then he is worth gambling on due to his huge amount of experience at the highest level.

Capello needs to ponder whether he should bring Ferdinand back in whenever he is fit, in a similar scenario experienced by Ledley King under Harry Redknapp at Spurs, or whether to ditch the injury prone stopper for the next best in line.

Capello needs to weigh up how much of an improvement to the side will there be for including a fit Ferdinand intermittently over the upside of developing a solid partnership between, say, Terry and Gary Cahill.

Use Impact Substitutions Rather Than Direct Replacements

If England are chasing a game and in need of a goal, Capello needs to realise that the current tactics and formation are not working in the majority of cases.

Too often have we seen Capello bring on like-for-like substitutions and fail to alter the proceedings.

England have plenty of players capable of mixing up their style.

The likes of Peter Crouch due to his size and the raw pace of Aaron Lennon or Gabriel Agbonlahor must be considered, as well as the sheer brute force of Andy Carroll.

All remain viable options and should be used when England are in need of a game changer.

Depending on the opposition and which player is most likely to expose that team's most vulnerable weakness, Capello should be prepared to scrap his original plan and try something different.

England must exhaust all possibilities during the game when things fail to go their way.

It is great to prepare diligently for a tournament and be set on a formation, a fundamental for breeding the confidence required to believe that victory is obtainable.

But England often find themselves in precarious positions when the opposition work them out, and this is when England must change.

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