Fabio Capello deserves to stay as England's manager
After an incredibly disappointing exit at the 2010 FIFA South Africa World Cup, the Italian manager of team England, Fabio Capello, now faces questions about his future with the squad. Many analysts have called for Capello to step down or be replaced, following the failure of an English team that was supposed to end their 44-year World Cup drought.
In a sense, Capello may be a victim of his own success. The reason expectations were so high on England heading into the World Cup was because they had looked to be in terrific form before their World Cup campaign, which Capello had coached them through.
They won nine of 10 qualifying matches, which were highlighted by the 4-1 and 5-1 crushing defeats they inflicted on Croatia. The revenge was all the sweeter because of Croatia's having knocked England out of qualification for the 2008 Euro Cup. Before the World Cup began, Capello was widely praised for having turned the English side into a fearsome, disciplined machine.
While England is always under much scrutiny at the World Cup because of the enormous expectations placed upon them by their fans in their soccer crazy country, this time their team was considered a legitimate contender instead of simply a popular team. Their powerful offence largely failed them in the Group stage, as they barely scraped through with a 1-0 win over Slovenia after a lacklustre 0-0 draw with weak Algeria.
Their lack of fire and cohesion caused the fickle English press to almost immediately turn on Capello, as well as star striker Wayne Rooney, as the main causes for their team's disappointing play.
Capello should stay
One thing English fans will have to come to terms with is the fact that their nation is not a soccer superpower any more, and frankly hasn't been for a long time. While they lost, they didn't face the catastrophes of other nations this year. Losing to Germany in the Round of 16 may be seen as a failure, and undoubtedly they didn't live up to the hopes of England's desperate fans.
But historically these results are not much out of line with what the Lions have managed to achieve. It is true they made the quarterfinals in 2002 and 2006, achieving a slightly nobler result before being knocked out. It is also true they had a lone glimmer of hope in 1990, making the semi-finals. But to be fair, the Lions this year have done just as well as they did in 1998 and 1992 at the World Cup. They also avoided the calamity of missing the World Cup, which they did in 1994, 1978 and 1974.
Capello's critics are perhaps forgetting the even more inglorious failure of England to even make the 2008 Euro. It was after this debacle that Capello took over, nursing his team back to a powerhouse, at least in the qualifiers, where they rolled through their competition. A single 4-1 loss to a fantastic looking German squad, and a loss marred by a terrible referee's call isn't a valid reason to fire a proven top-level manager such as Capello, particularly when the Football Association had enough confidence in Capello to sign him to a contract extension in May.
Capello can lead English transition
England now has a tremendous opportunity. After looking like the much slower team against Germany, they will need to reform their line-up. Capello has spoken about changing England's emphasis to give more emphasis to speed and youth rather than experience and star power. He's right, and with England one of the oldest teams at the 2010 World Cup, players such as John Terry and Frank Lampard can make room for younger talent.
This transition will need a strong, steady hand to lead it through. Rather than create dislocation by bringing in a new coach at the same time, keep Capello at the top, where he'll have a change to redeem English football with a strong performance at the 2012 Euro.
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