Fabio Capello reflects on the start to his England career.
Capello looks back
Friday, 22 February 2008.
After seven weeks in charge of the England team, Fabio Capello has reflected on the start he has made and on the different aspects of English culture he has adapted to.
While Capello admits that there are some adjustments that must be made when working in a different environment, overall he has found that both the players and the people in England have provided a warm welcome.
"I've found the players well disposed and eager. I am very satisfied with their attitude," Capello explained.
"I had seen most of them in action before, but watching them on TV doesn’t allow you to appraise them off the ball. You can only verify their tactical level from the pitch. But in England there are club sides of very high tactical levels.
"(The English people) seem very close to my situation. They always greet me with great warmth, all of them wish me luck and repeat to me that I have a 'tough job' ahead."
His methods remain the same from his vast experience in football, while some cultural differences have caused inevitable adjustments.
Capello said: "I just carried over my working method, with a few adjustments to the local habits.
"The purpose is to bring the players to what I expect of them. It was the same in Spain. You need rules, but also an eye to the local culture. You can’t have dinner at 7.45pm in Spain when everybody dines at 9pm."
This weekend Capello will be at Wembley to watch a match for a second time. On this occasion it will be the League Cup final that will focus his attention and he is interested to see a number of English players he has yet to see in action.
"I am hoping to see in action for the first time two England defenders and a midfielder - John Terry, Ledley King, Frank Lampard.
"The national team coach job consists of watching matches, evaluating the form of the players, and planning accordingly."
While he is satisfied with his progress in learning English, Capello admits that on rare occasions regional dialect can make conversations difficult when visiting Premier League grounds.
Capello explained: "It is fundamental to speak the language, particularly before kick off and during the interval, for tactical plans and psychological support. The latter can be more important at times than the former.
"But I’m happy with my language progress. The only difficulty, when I tour Premier League matches, is that different pepole in different accents talk to me and in some instances I can hardly understand a word."
Looking ahead, Capello gave a description of what how he hopes his England will perform in the future.
He said: "Disciplined on the pitch, with good movement as a team, and at the same time capable of stressing the qualities and abilities of each individual player."