Fabio Capello
Encyclopedia
Fabio Capello (ˈfabjo kaˈpello; born 18 June 1946) is an Italian football manager and former player. He is the manager of the England national football team
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

.

Capello has the distinction of winning the domestic league title with every club he has coached throughout his career. In his first five seasons as a manager he won four Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

 titles with Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

, where he also won the 1993–94 UEFA Champions League, defeating Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....

 4–0 in a memorable final. He then spent a year at Real Madrid
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

, where he won the La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...

 title at his first attempt, and in 2001 led Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

 to their first league title in 18 years. Capello also won two titles at Juventus (which were later stripped after the Calciopoli scandal), and in 2006 returned to Real Madrid, where he won another La Liga title. Overall he has won a major league championship in seven (or nine, counting the two revoked titles with Juventus) of his 16 seasons as a coach, and is one of the few managers to claim championship victories in four major European cities: Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...

, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, and Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

.

After being appointed England manager in December 2007, Capello announced that the role would be the last of his career. Capello's contract with the Football Association came into effect on 7 January 2008, and was initially planned to run for two-and-a-half years; on 24 January 2008, Capello was named president of the League Managers Association
League Managers Association
The League Managers Association is the organisation which collectively represents all Premiership and Football League managers in English football...

, a customary role given to the English national coach. In May 2010 it was announced that Capello's contract had been extended to 2012, though Capello stated he would leave the post after Euro 2012

Early life

He was born in San Canzian d'Isonzo
San Canzian d'Isonzo
San Canzian d'Isonzo is a comune in the province of Gorizia, in Friuli – Venezia Giulia, Italy.The small town is situated about 30 kilometers from Gorizia, the capital of the province, and not too far west of the important port of Trieste...

 near Gorizia
Gorizia
Gorizia is a town and comune in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, and it is a local center of tourism, industry, and commerce. Since 1947, a twin...

, in north-eastern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, in what was then the Allied-occupied Zone A
Morgan Line
The Morgan Line was the line of demarcation set up after World War II in the region known as Julian March which prior to the war belonged to the Kingdom of Italy. The Morgan Line was the border between two military administrations in the region: the Yugoslav on the east, and that of the Allied...

 of the Julian March
Julian March
The Julian March is a former political region of southeastern Europe on what are now the borders between Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy...

. His uncle Mario Tortul was a football player, who played for Triestina, Padova, Sampdoria and the Italian national football team in the 1960s.

Club career

A midfielder, Capello first played as a youth for his local club side (Pieris in the land of Bisiacaria, between Isonzo and Timavo
Timavo
The River, known in Slovene as the or , is a 2-km river in the Province of Trieste. It has four sources near San Giovanni near Duino and outflows in the Gulf of Panzano between Trieste and Monfalcone , Italy....

) which was coached by his father, Guerrino. He was signed by Paolo Mazza
Paolo Mazza
Paolo Mazza was an Italian football manager. He was co-manager of the Italy national football team at the 1962 FIFA World Cup, together with Giovanni Ferrari....

, the President of SPAL
Spal 1907
SPAL 1907 is an Italian football club, based in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1907 as Società Polisportiva Ars et Labor and was refounded in 2005....

, for the fee of two million lire despite interest from AC Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

. In his second season in the youth team he helped the club win the Italian Youth Championship and made his first-team debut against Sampdoria on 29 March 1964. He made four appearances for a struggling side that was relegated from Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

 giving him experience of both success and failure in the same season.

After returning to the top division at the first attempt, Capello became a key player in the 1965–66 season, taking penalties and helping them avoid a swift return to Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...

. He was also called up to the Italian Under-23 side along with teammate Edy Reja. However, injury to his left knee restricted him to just sixteen appearances the following season. In 1967, he moved to Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

 where he became a key player for the club. In his first season, he helped them to first place after eight matches, including scoring the winner in a 10–9 victory over Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...

. However, a recurrence of the injury to his left knee kept him out for the rest of the season and Roma eventually finished in tenth place, just 5 points away from relegation. The following season, under new manager Helenio Herrera
Helenio Herrera
Helenio Herrera Gavilán was a Franco-Argentine football player and manager.Although born in Argentina, Herrera's parents were both Spanish, his father being a well-known Spanish anarchist in exile...

, a fit Capello scored 6 goals as Roma finished 8th and won his first major trophy, the Coppa Italia
Coppa Italia
The Coppa Italia is an Italian football annual cup competition. Its first edition was held in 1922, but the second champions were not crowned until 1936. Roma and Juventus lead the way with nine wins. Roma has contested more finals, 16, while Torino and Juventus follow with 13...

. This qualified Roma to play the Anglo-Italian League Cup
Anglo-Italian League Cup
The Anglo-Italian League Cup was a short-lived football competition between clubs in England and Italy.-History:...

, where they played Swindon Town
Swindon Town F.C.
Swindon Town Football Club are a team based in Swindon, Wiltshire. Currently in League Two, Swindon have been managed by Paolo Di Canio since 23 May 2011...

 who had beaten Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...

 in the 1969 League Cup. Capello played in both legs against Swindon, Roma winning 2–1 at home in the first leg but losing 4–0 in the second leg at The County Ground
County Ground, Swindon
The County Ground is a stadium located near the town centre of Swindon, England. It is home to Swindon Town Football Club and has been for over a century.The current capacity is 15,728, all-seated...

, his first taste of football in England.
He was then sold to Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...

, where he was a mainstay in the 1970s. Juventus were the dominant Italian team of the decade, and he won the Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

three times with the club. Capello ended his career as player with Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

 in 1980, having won his fourth Serie A with the club in 1979.

Italian national team

Capello also played thirty-two times for Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...

; he is particularly remembered for a goal with which Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...

 beat England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

 1–0 at Wembley for the first time in its history (14 November 1973), which he himself regarded as the highlight of his playing career. Capello scored the lone goal for Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...

 against Poland
Poland national football team
The Poland national football team represents Poland in association football and is controlled by the Polish Football Association, the governing body for football in Poland...

 during the 1974 FIFA World Cup
1974 FIFA World Cup
The 1974 FIFA World Cup, the tenth staging of the World Cup, was held in West Germany from 13 June to 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the current trophy, the FIFA World Cup Trophy, created by the Italian sculptor Silvio Gazzaniga, was awarded...

 though Italy lost the match 2–1 and failed to qualify for the second round of the competition. He was overlooked for the 1978 FIFA World Cup
1978 FIFA World Cup
The 1978 FIFA World Cup, the 11th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Argentina between 1 June and 25 June. The 1978 World Cup was won by Argentina who beat the Netherlands 3–1 after extra time in the final. This win was the first World Cup title for Argentina, who became the fifth...

 even after having good club form with Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

: the manager at that time, Enzo Bearzot
Enzo Bearzot
Vincenzo "Enzo" Bearzot was an Italian association football player and manager. He is best known for having led the Italian national football team to a triumph in the 1982 FIFA World Cup.-Playing career:...

, preferred other defensive minded midfielders such as Marco Tardelli over the attacking minded Capello.

After several years as a football pundit for Italian TV SPW and a brief spell as caretaker manager of AC Milan in 1987, he became a leading candidate to succeed Arrigo Sacchi
Arrigo Sacchi
Arrigo Sacchi is an Italian football coach. He is best known for his success coaching Italian teams, particularly with Milan where he won back to back European Cups as coach in the late eighties where he was head coach of the Italy national football team . He was twice manager of A.C...

 as coach of the team, and he was formally appointed as manager of AC Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

 in 1991.

Coaching career

Before going into management, Fabio spent a couple of seasons from 1987 to 1989 being a coach with Italian side Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio and manager Emiliano Mondonico, a personal friend.

Managerial career

A student at Coverciano
Coverciano
Coverciano, also known as Casa Italia, located in the quartiere of Florence with the same name, is the central training ground and technical headquarters of the FIGC, the Italian Football Association. The complex covers technical and training events associated with various Italian national football...

, in 1984 he penned a research article entitled "The Zonal Marking System".

First spell at Milan

His first experience was leading Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

 in the last five games of the 1986/87
Serie A 1986-87
The 1986/1987 Serie A season ended with S.S.C. Napoli doing the "domestic double", winning their first Scudetto and third Coppa Italia, spurred on by their talismanic captain Diego Maradona....

 Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

 season, replacing Nils Liedholm
Nils Liedholm
Nils Liedholm was a Swedish football midfielder and coach. Il Barone , as he is affectionately known in Italy, was renowned for being part of Sweden's "Gre-No-Li" trio of strikers along with Gunnar Gren and Gunnar Nordahl at A.C. Milan and the Swedish national team...

 and achieving the UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

 qualifications in a play-off with Sampdoria
U.C. Sampdoria
Unione Calcio Sampdoria is an Italian association football club based in Genoa. The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria...

. However, the following season, Arrigo Sacchi
Arrigo Sacchi
Arrigo Sacchi is an Italian football coach. He is best known for his success coaching Italian teams, particularly with Milan where he won back to back European Cups as coach in the late eighties where he was head coach of the Italy national football team . He was twice manager of A.C...

 became the new Rossoneri manager and Capello stepped aside, but still worked for the society.

Capello made his second and best remembered coaching experience in the early 1990s again with Milan, replacing Sacchi and leading a team including the likes of Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit
Ruud Gullit
OON is a Dutch football manager and former football player, who played professionally in the 1980s and 1990s. He was the captain of the Netherlands national team that was victorious at Euro 88 and was also a member of the squad for the 1990 World Cup. He was named the European Footballer of the...

, Paolo Maldini
Paolo Maldini
Paolo Cesare Maldini is an Italian former footballer who played as a left or central defender. He spent all 25 seasons of his career at Serie A club Milan, before retiring at the age of 41 in 2009, becoming a symbol and a legend of the club...

, and Franco Baresi
Franco Baresi
Franco Baresi is an Italian football youth team coach and former player. He played as a sweeper and spent his entire career with Serie A club AC Milan, acknowledged as one of the greatest defenders ever to play the game. Baresi was nicknamed "Piscinin", Milanese for "Little one"...

 to four Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

 titles in five years with a team nicknamed "The Invincibles". Milan were at this time bankrolled by the vast wealth of the Italian media mogul Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi
Silvio Berlusconi , also known as Il Cavaliere – from knighthood to the Order of Merit for Labour which he received in 1977 – is an Italian politician and businessman who served three terms as Prime Minister of Italy, from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006, and 2008 to 2011. Berlusconi is also the...

. Under Capello, Milan remained unbeaten for 58 league games between 19 May 1991 and 21 March 1993, which included an entire season where they were unbeaten in the league. They were finally defeated 1–0 by Parma
Parma F.C.
Parma Football Club , commonly referred to as just Parma, is an Italian professional football club based in Parma, Emilia–Romagna that will compete in Serie A for the 2011–12 season, having finished in twelfth position last season. Founded as Verdi Foot Ball Club in July 1913, the club changed its...

 after a goal from Faustino Asprilla
Faustino Asprilla
Faustino Hernán "Tino" Asprilla Hinestroza is a former Colombian football player. He was known by his supporters in his home country as The Octopus for his voracious appetite...

.

With a style that spurned the traditional Italian stereotype of Catenaccio
Catenaccio
Catenaccio is a tactical system in football with an emphasis on defence. In Italian, catenaccio means "door-bolt", implying a highly organized and effective backline defense which is intended to prevent goals.-History:...

, in 1994 Milan routed the favourites FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....

 4–0 to win the UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

, earning them a reputation of one of the great sides of the modern era. Although Milan lost the Serie A title in 1995—finishing a disappointing fourth—Capello signed off from his six-year stint with the Rossoneri by regaining the league championship the following year. He was replaced by Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...

an coach Oscar Tabárez
Oscar Tabárez
Óscar Wáshington Tabárez Silva, nicknamed El Maestro is a retired Uruguayan footballer who played as a defender, and the current manager of the Uruguayan national team....

 who was sacked after only a few games.

By now, Capello had earned himself a reputation as one of Europe's leading coaches. He had also become known as a disciplinarian, unafraid of clamping down on his players, even his leading stars, if he felt they were not pulling their weight for the team. Towards the end of his time at Milan, he had clashed with player Paolo Di Canio
Paolo Di Canio
Paolo Di Canio is a Italian former professional footballer and current manager of League Two side Swindon Town. Di Canio made over 500 league appearances and scored over 100 league goals as a player....

 who was subsequently sold to Glasgow Celtic.

First spell at Real Madrid

Capello was unveiled as the new Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

 coach. A major task was combining the attacking talents of Davor Šuker
Davor Šuker
Davor Šuker , is a retired Croatian footballer. He played as a striker for a number of European clubs as well as the Croatian national team, where he is the all-time top goal scorer with 45 goals....

, Predrag Mijatović
Predrag Mijatovic
Predrag "Peđa" Mijatović is a Montenegrin football player and former sports director of Real Madrid. He is considered one of Yugoslavia's best players of the 1990s. He was acclaimed as the best athlete of Yugoslavia in 1997...

 and Raúl
Raúl González
Raúl González Blanco , known simply as Raúl, is a Spanish footballer who plays as a striker. He currently plays for German club Schalke 04....

 in a single team, which Capello did by playing a three-man attack, in spite of his reputation for cautious and defensive football. He had a single season in charge of Real guiding the club to the Spanish league title
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...

 in 1997
La Liga 1996-97
* It was the last season with 22 teams in La Liga. To reduce the number of teams in the league, the last four teams, CF Extremadura, Sevilla FC, Hércules CF and CD Logroñés, were relegated and the fifth-to-last team, Rayo Vallecano, played a relegation playoff and was also relegated.-League...

. Real managed to edge out their bitter rivals FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....

 by just two points.

Despite his tenure with Los Merengues
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

lasting only a year, he was credited with bringing in a number of players such as Šuker, Mijatović, Roberto Carlos and Clarence Seedorf
Clarence Seedorf
Clarence Clyde Seedorf OON is a Dutch footballer who currently plays as an attacking midfielder for Serie A club Milan. Seedorf is the first player to have won the Champions League with three different clubs - Ajax in 1995, Real Madrid in 1998 and Milan in 2003 and 2007...

 who helped the club establish their Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

 dominance over the next few years.

Second spell at Milan

Despite a belief by the Lazio owner Sergio Cragnotti
Sergio Cragnotti
Sergio Cragnotti is an Italian entrepreneur and author.One of the most high-profile and wealthy business figures in Italy in recent times, Cragnotti is best known for having been President of S.S. Lazio. However, his most influential position was as head of food conglomerate Cirio...

 that Capello had made a verbal agreement to coach his club, Capello instead returned to Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

 for a brief and less successful spell. Some of the previous squad had departed, and others such as Franco Baresi
Franco Baresi
Franco Baresi is an Italian football youth team coach and former player. He played as a sweeper and spent his entire career with Serie A club AC Milan, acknowledged as one of the greatest defenders ever to play the game. Baresi was nicknamed "Piscinin", Milanese for "Little one"...

 were coming to the end of their careers. The squad had to be extensively rebuilt, and many of the new signings did not gel. The team managed to win just 11 games all season, with a particular low occurring in March 1998 when they lost 4–1 to Juventus and Capello was sent off for protesting a decision by the referee. This was followed by a 5–0 defeat to Roma in May. Milan finished the Serie A 1997-98
Serie A 1997-98
Juventus won the title in controversial circumstances. In their match on Sunday, 26 April 1998, against eventual runners-up, Inter, Ronaldo was denied what appeared a clear penalty for Inter after being blocked by Mark Iuliano of Juventus. Had the penalty been awarded and then dispatched, the...

 season in 10th place, 30 points behind the champions Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...

, by which time Capello had already departed the club. Some of the players suggested that Capello had instituted a more lax training regime than he had in his previous spell. A run in the Italian Cup ended when Milan were beaten in the final by Lazio 3–2 on aggregate, despite taking a 1–0 lead in the first leg. Capello took credit for Milan's title win the following season claiming, as he had rebuilt the side, that it was "my team".

Managing Roma

Following his dismissal at Milan, Capello took a short break from coaching. He told a reporter that he "sat on a beach and thought about football". He also enjoyed a spell as a colour commentator for Italian television, participating in coverage of the Copa America 1999. In May 1999 he moved to Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

, the club he had first joined as a player thirty years before. His arrival was hailed by the Roma President, Franco Sensi
Franco Sensi
Francesco Sensi, Cavaliere del lavoro, , was an Italian oil tycoon. He was born in Rome, where he lived throughout his entire life, though he also served time as mayor of Visso, the city where his family came from. He had been for fifteen years, until his death, general manager of Associazione...

, who said "Capello is a winner and I believe in him". Capello was joined by Franco Baldini
Franco Baldini
Franco Baldini is a former Italian footballer who is currently working as the General Manager under Fabio Capello for the English national team. He will become the general manager of AS Roma in October 2011.-Career:...

 who became the club's Sporting Director. Capello built his side around Marco Delvecchio
Marco Delvecchio
Marco Delvecchio is an Italian retired footballer. He spent the most of his career at AS Roma where he is still remembered for his ease in scoring against the rivals of SS Lazio in the Derby della Capitale....

, sometimes leaving Vincenzo Montella
Vincenzo Montella
Vincenzo Montella is a retired Italian footballer. Currently he is the youngest head coach of Serie A, after being named at the helm of Sicilian outfit Catania on 9 June 2011....

 on the bench. Believing his squad lacked a world-class striker, Capello made a move to sign Ruud van Nistelrooy
Ruud van Nistelrooy
Rutgerus Johannes Martinus "Ruud" van Nistelrooy, , is a Dutch footballer who plays as a striker for Málaga CF in Spain's La Liga. He is the second-highest goalscorer in Champions League history with 60 goals...

, but the deal was wrecked following a serious injury. His first season saw Roma finish 6th, made particularly disappointing as cross-city rivals Lazio won the title, and they were knocked out of the UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

 by Leeds United.

Capello's breakthrough at the club occurred when he won the 2001 Serie A
Serie A 2000-01
In the 2000-01 season, Serie A, the major football Italian professional league, was composed by 18 teams, for the 13th consecutive time from season 1988-89....

, having signed Walter Samuel
Walter Samuel
Walter Adrián Samuel is an Argentine footballer who currently plays for Internazionale. Throughout his career he has been regarded as one of football's toughest defenders, with team-mate and Inter captain Javier Zanetti referring to him as the "hardest player" he has played with.Having been gifted...

 to strengthen his defence and Gabriel Batistuta
Gabriel Batistuta
Gabriel Omar Batistuta , nicknamed Batigol, is a former professional footballer. The prolific Argentine striker played most of his club football at Fiorentina in Italy, and he is the tenth top scorer of all-time in the Italian Serie A league, with 184 goals in 318 matches...

 as a goalscorer. Although the large fee for Batistuta was questioned, the Argentinian scored a number of vital goals. The season began in difficult fashion with Roma struggling for form and an angry fans protest at the club's Trigoria training complex which turned violent when players cars were attacked. Capello resisted calls for his resignation, and the team's results dramatically improved helped by the performances of the Brazilian midfielder Emerson
Emerson Ferreira da Rosa
Émerson Ferreira da Rosa , simply known as Emerson, is a retired Brazilian footballer who played as a midfielder. He had 73 caps for Brazil from 1997 to 2006.-Grêmio:...

. The title was sealed with a 3–0 victory over Parma at the Stadio Olimpico
Stadio Olimpico
The Stadio Olimpico is the main and largest sports facility of Rome, Italy. It is located within the Foro Italico sports complex on the north of the city. An asset of the Italian National Olympic Committee, the structure is intended primarily for football...

 prompting a major pitch invasion
Pitch invasion
A pitch invasion or field invasion, known as rushing the field in the United States, occurs when a crowd of people who are watching a sports game run onto the field, to celebrate or protest about an incident...

 by the Roma supporters. That was Roma's first major honour in a decade and only the third ever time they had been crowned Champions of Italy. Capello was praised for fielding Montella, a player he had had a bust-up with just days before, in the final match of the season.

Following the title win there was also a widespread belief that he had done a secret deal to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson
Alex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...

 at Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...

. Ferguson had announced his decision to retire, with Capello a leading candidate to replace him allegedly going so far as to meet with the Manchester United chairman Martin Edwards
Martin Edwards
Charles Martin Edwards was the chairman of Manchester United from 1980 until 2002. He now holds the position of honorary life president at the club.- Education :...

. Capello did little to dispel the rumours when he remarked "I like the spirit of English football and I would like to work in English football" adding that it was an honour to be pursued by the club. Capello's link with United eventually came to nothing after Ferguson abandoned his decision to retire and signed a new contract, with Martin Edwards claiming that United had been three or four days away from appointing a new manager, believed to be Capello, when Ferguson changed his mind.

The 2002 season developed into a battle between Roma and Juventus. After a heated encounter between the teams, Capello used an interview to criticise the Moggi family that ran Juventus, particularly their dealings with players agent
Sports agent
A sports agent procures and negotiates employment and endorsement contracts for an athlete.In return, the sports agent generally receives between 4 and 10% of the athlete's playing contract, and 10 to 20% of the athlete's endorsement contract, though these figures vary...

s. Capello signed a new contract in April 2002, worth £2.37m a season. The defence of the title was dealt a major blow when the club drew with bottom-placed Venezia, as Roma finished second in the table behind Juventus by a single point. The following season Roma failed to maintain a serious challenge, and finished in eighth. Their Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

 ambitions were also ended following a defeat and a draw against Arsenal which saw them finish bottom of their group. Once again it had been English opposition that had thwarted Roma in Europe. Roma lost the Italian Cup final to A.C Milan, with Capello particularly angered by supporters who waved banners calling on him to go. Capello's final year at Roma, began well with the team playing much better football. They went on a seven game winning streak before Christmas, including comfortable victories over Juventus and Inter Milan. This led to speculation linking him with Juventus, despite his past differences with Luciano Moggi
Luciano Moggi
Luciano Moggi is an Italian football managing director. He was the general director of Juventus F.C. from 1994 until May 2006, years that anointed him as one of the most successful football managing director except the last two club seasons that were involved in Calciopoli...

. Capello believed he had taken Roma as far as he could, and began to seriously considered a move. In the run-in the club's form dipped and they ended up finishing eleven points behind champions A.C. Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

.

Juventus

In 2004, Capello left debt-ridden Roma to sign with Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...

. His move came as a surprise, because he had kept it such a secret, and because he had been engaged in a war of words with the Moggi family. When Capello broke the news that he was joining Juventus, Franco Baldini believed he was joking. One of Capello's first moves was to sign Emerson
Emerson Ferreira da Rosa
Émerson Ferreira da Rosa , simply known as Emerson, is a retired Brazilian footballer who played as a midfielder. He had 73 caps for Brazil from 1997 to 2006.-Grêmio:...

 from Roma, further angering many of his critics who believed he had betrayed Roma. Juventus won the 2004–05
Serie A 2004-05
In the 2004–05 season, the Serie A, the highest professional football league in Italy, was composed of 20 teams for the first time in several years....

 and 2005–06
Serie A 2005-06
In the 2005–06 season, Serie A, the major professional football league in Italian, was contested for the second year in a row by 20 teams. The league commenced on August 28, 2005 and finished on May 14, 2006...

 Scudetto under Capello's leadership, but were later stripped of their trophies due to involvement in the Italian match-fixing scandal
2006 Serie A scandal
The 2006 Italian football scandal involved Italy's top professional football leagues, Serie A and Serie B...

. The scandal engulfed the Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

 club, and in 2006 they were relegated to Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...

 by the authorities.

In July 2006, with Juventus in the midst of the aforementioned match-fixing scandal, Capello resigned as Juventus manager. Press reports strongly linked him with a move back to Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

; new club president Ramón Calderón
Ramón Calderón
José Ramón Calderón Ramos is a lawyer and an ex-President of Spanish sports club Real Madrid.-Life and career:...

 had publicly stated his hope that Capello would return for a second stint at the club and on 5 July 2006, the official Real Madrid website announced Capello's appointment.

Capello was criticised by Juventus captain Alessandro Del Piero
Alessandro Del Piero
Alessandro Del Piero Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer who plays for Serie A club Juventus, of which he is also club captain....

, whilst leading players Fabio Cannavaro
Fabio Cannavaro
Fabio Cannavaro, Ufficiale OMRI is a former Italian footballer considered one of the greatest defenders of all time and was given the name "Muro di Berlino" which means The Berlin wall by Italian supporters. He spent the majority of his career in Italy...

 and Emerson
Emerson Ferreira da Rosa
Émerson Ferreira da Rosa , simply known as Emerson, is a retired Brazilian footballer who played as a midfielder. He had 73 caps for Brazil from 1997 to 2006.-Grêmio:...

 also left for Real Madrid, with some believing that Capello had privately persuaded the players to follow him. In the wake of the club's enforced relegation, Juventus were struggling to hang on to their leading players.

Second spell at Real Madrid

Capello arrived at a Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

 side suffering one of the longest spells without a trophy in their history. He quickly drew the disdain of Real's ardent supporters because of his defensive playing style. In interviews, Capello responded to those critics by saying that the beauty of attacking plays was old. He said that results were much more important than playing beautifully. He also added that "those days are over." His remit was to bring the title back to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...

, a task that had been too much for five other coaches since 2003. In Spain, he was commonly referred to as "Don Fabio".
At Real Madrid, Capello had several high-profile falling outs. He was criticised for not playing David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...

 because of his contract wranglings and Ronaldo
Ronaldo
Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima , commonly known as Ronaldo, is a retired Brazilian footballer who last played for Corinthians. Ronaldo is widely considered to be the greatest 'pure' striker in the history of the modern game, and by some accounts, in the history of football. Ronaldo was one of the...

, who struggled for fitness and form. Capello also feuded with his compatriot Antonio Cassano
Antonio Cassano
Antonio Cassano is an Italian footballer who plays for Serie A club Milan as a striker. Nicknamed Il Gioiello di Bari Vecchia , he is known for his short temper as much as his ability on the pitch, which led to the coining of the neologism Cassanata by his former coach, Fabio Capello, in November...

; the two had previously had disputes at Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

.

In March, Real were again eliminated early from the Champions League
UEFA Champions League 2006-07
The 2006–07 UEFA Champions League was the 15th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since it was rebranded from the European Cup, and the 52nd season overall. The final was contested by Milan and Liverpool on 23 May 2007...

 and were mired in fourth place in the league, six points behind FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....

. On 20 February 2007, Real Madrid were forced to deny rumours that Capello would be leaving after that day's match.

Despite the unrest, Capello recalled Beckham, whose return was pivotal for the team's recovery. A string of successful results in the latter half of the season took Real to the top of the table, while Barça's results became inconsistent. Real Madrid won their 30th league title on the final day of the season by beating RCD Mallorca
RCD Mallorca
Real Club Deportivo Mallorca is a Spanish football team based on Palma, Majorca, in the Balearic Islands. Founded on 5 March 1916, the team currently plays in the Spanish first division, holding home games at Son Moix....

 3–1 at home. The victory was achieved after Capello substituted an injured Beckham and brought on José Antonio Reyes
José Antonio Reyes
José Antonio Reyes Calderón is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Atlético Madrid.Mainly a left winger but also a forward, he made his professional debuts for hometown's Sevilla at only 16, signing with England's Arsenal aged 20.After a relatively successful career abroad, Reyes...

. Real had been 1–0 down prior to the substitution and Reyes turned the match scoring two goals. Despite winning La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...

, Capello was sacked on 28 June 2007 due to Real's pragmatic style of play at a club with recent memories of the individualistic and free-flowing, but ultimately unsuccessful Galáctico
Galáctico
Galácticos is a Spanish term used to describe expensive, world-famous Real Madrid football players. This term came into use to describe the policy pursued in the first tenure of Florentino Pérez's presidency at Real Madrid, where he purchased at least one galáctico in the summer of every year...

era.

Appointment

After the dismissal of Steve McClaren
Steve McClaren
Stephen "Steve" McClaren is an English football manager and former player.McClaren was previously manager of VfL Wolfsburg in Germany between May 2010 and February 2011, having left his post at Dutch side FC Twente, with whom he won the club's first Eredivisie championship in the 2009–10 season...

 following the failure of England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

 to qualify for UEFA Euro 2008, Capello was linked, together with several other managers such as José Mourinho
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Félix Mourinho is a Portuguese football manager and the current manager of Real Madrid. He is commonly known as "The Special One".Mourinho is regarded by some players, coaches and critics as the best ever coach in football....

, Marcello Lippi
Marcello Lippi
Marcello Lippi, Commendatore OMRI is a former Italian World Cup-winning football manager and former player. He served as Italian national team head coach from 16 July 2004 to 12 July 2006 and led Italy to win the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He was re-appointed as Italian head coach in the summer of 2008...

, and Martin O'Neill
Martin O'Neill
Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, OBE, is a Northern Irish football manager and former player.Until resigning the post on 9 August 2010, he was manager of Aston Villa. Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham...

 to the England national team position; he then admitted that he was interested in the job.

After Mourinho ruled himself out as a potential candidate for the position, the media immediately labelled Capello as the new favourite. Alex Ferguson
Alex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...

, Arsène Wenger
Arsène Wenger
Arsène Wenger, OBE is a French association football manager and former player, who has managed English Premier League side Arsenal since 1996...

, and Rafael Benítez
Rafael Benítez
Rafael "Rafa" Benítez Maudes is a football manager, and former player. He is currently unemployed, after leaving as manager of Internazionale in December 2010....

 then voiced their support for Capello and the news that Capello had backed out of long-held TV commitments with Italian state broadcaster RAI
RAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...

 further confirmed Capello as the favourite to be England boss. It was initially mentioned that Capello's poor English skills might rule him out of the position, but the Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...

 stated that this was not so. He was formally appointed as England manager on 14 December 2007, and commenced his day-to-day role on 7 January 2008, on a four-and-a-half year deal. It is estimated that his annual pay is £6 million. After being confirmed for the job, he announced it would be his last in football. Capello announced on the day of his unveiling that it was a dream come true to manage the England national team and that he hoped to learn the English language in the following month prior to his first official meeting with the players.

Capello was welcomed by many English fans and the press who hailed his appointment as a triumph, citing in particular his impressive trophy haul and his reputation as a disciplinarian in contrast to the excessive leniency perceived to have existed under his two predecessors. For example he would later strip John Terry
John Terry
John George Terry is an English professional footballer. Terry plays in a centre back position and is the captain of Chelsea in the Premier League...

 of the captaincy he had generally held for over a year after a scandal, in February 2010. He also referred to the members of the England team as "rich boys" and said each member needed to sacrifice something during the World Cup. In Italy, news of his appointment was greeted with a sense of pride that one of their countrymen had been selected to coach an elite European team. Equally, his arrival has generated some criticism, notably from FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...

 President Sepp Blatter
Sepp Blatter
Joseph S. Blatter , commonly known as Sepp Blatter, is a Swiss football administrator, who serves as the 8th and current President of FIFA . He was elected on 8 June 1998, succeeding João Havelange. He was re-elected as President in 2002, 2007, and 2011...

, who said, "I would say it is a little surprising that the motherland of football has ignored a sacrosanct law or belief that the national team manager should be from the same country as the players."
The Italian led England to the World Cup winning 9 out of the ten qualifying games, winning all their home games and only losing to Ukraine
Ukraine national football team
The Ukraine national football team is the national football team of Ukraine and is controlled by the Football Federation of Ukraine. After Ukrainian Independence and breakaway from the Soviet Union, they played their first match against Hungary on 29 April 1992...

, with qualification having been secured, in October 2009.

2008

England's first match with Capello as manager
England national football team manager
The role of an England national football team manager was first established in May 1947 with the appointment of Walter Winterbottom. Before this, the England team was selected by the "International Selection Committee", a process in which the Football Association would select coaches and trainers...

 was at Wembley
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...

 against Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...

 on 6 February 2008. Much of the speculation approaching the game had centred on whether Capello would award David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...

 his 100th international cap. Another aspect that generated a lot of interest was Capello's choice of captain. Several regular starters under Steve McClaren
Steve McClaren
Stephen "Steve" McClaren is an English football manager and former player.McClaren was previously manager of VfL Wolfsburg in Germany between May 2010 and February 2011, having left his post at Dutch side FC Twente, with whom he won the club's first Eredivisie championship in the 2009–10 season...

 admitted they were uncertain of their future selection. On 31 January 2008, it was confirmed that a number of senior players including Sol Campbell
Sol Campbell
Sulzeer Jeremiah "Sol" Campbell is an English footballer who is currently a free agent. A central defender, Campbell has played for Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Portsmouth, Notts County and Newcastle United, as well as the English national team.Born in East London to Jamaican parents, Campbell's...

 and Beckham had not been selected for Capello's debut squad, with the Italian citing 'fitness reasons' for dropping former captain Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...

, who had not played a professional game since 21 November 2007. After recent erratic form, Paul Robinson
Paul Robinson (goalkeeper)
Paul William Robinson is an English footballer who plays for Blackburn Rovers as a goalkeeper in the Premier League. He had also been an England international and he earned 41 caps between 2003 and 2007 before his retirement from international football in August 2010.He joined Leeds United at 16...

 also missed out on the squad. Debut call-ups were handed to two players: Curtis Davies
Curtis Davies
Curtis Eugene Davies is an English professional footballer who plays as a central defender for Birmingham City. Davies has previously played for Luton Town, where he began his career, West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa and Leicester City....

 and Gabriel Agbonlahor
Gabriel Agbonlahor
Gabriel Imuetinyan "Gabby" Agbonlahor is an English footballer who plays as a striker for Aston Villa. Agbonlahor is a product of Aston Villa's Academy and has earned three caps for the English national team. He is currently the longest-serving player at Villa Park, joining as a youth player in...

, both of Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...

. Capello decided to give the captain's armband
Captain (football)
The team captain of a football team, sometimes known as the skipper, is a team member chosen to be the on-pitch leader of the team: it is often one of the older or more experienced members of the squad, or a player that can heavily influence a game...

 to Steven Gerrard
Steven Gerrard
Steven George Gerrard MBE is an English footballer who plays for and captains Premier League club Liverpool. He also has 89 caps for the England national team. He has played much of his career in a centre midfielder role, but he has also been used as a second striker and right winger...

 for his first game in charge, beginning his rotation policy.

Jermaine Jenas
Jermaine Jenas
Jermaine Anthony Jenas is an English footballer who plays for Aston Villa in the Premier League on loan from Tottenham Hotspur. He is of mixed African-Caribbean and English descent.-Nottingham Forest:...

 scored Capello's first goal as England manager in the 40th minute against Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...

 at Wembley
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...

. Shaun Wright-Phillips
Shaun Wright-Phillips
Shaun Cameron Wright-Phillips is an English footballer who plays for Queens Park Rangers and the England national team. He is the adopted son of former England international, Ian Wright and the half-brother of fellow professional football player Bradley Wright-Phillips...

 restored the lead after the 61st minute, shortly after coming on as a substitute. After a slow start, England won the game 2–1, handing Capello his first victory in his first game as England manager. He was warmly welcomed by the England fans before the game commenced.

For his second game in charge, an international friendly against France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...

, Capello did finally award Beckham his landmark 100th cap. He also rotated the captaincy, giving the armband to Rio Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand
Rio Gavin Ferdinand is an English footballer. He plays at centre back for Manchester United in the Premier League and for the England national football team...

. England lost the game 1–0 after a Franck Ribéry
Franck Ribéry
Franck Ribéry is a French international footballer who currently plays for German club Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga. He primarily plays as a winger, preferably on the left side, and is known for "pace, energy, skill and precise passing." Ribéry is described as a player who is "fast, tricky and...

 penalty, marking Capello's first defeat as the national coach. Capello's third game in charge was against the United States
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...

 on 28 May 2008. He named Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...

's John Terry
John Terry
John George Terry is an English professional footballer. Terry plays in a centre back position and is the captain of Chelsea in the Premier League...

 as the captain for this match. England comfortably won an unremarkable game 2–0.

On 31 May 2008, Capello named David Beckham
David Beckham
David Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...

 as captain for the match on 1 June 2008 against Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago national football team
The Trinidad and Tobago national football team, nicknamed The Soca Warriors, is the national team of Trinidad and Tobago and is run by the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation. It reached the first round of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Finals...

. It was Beckham's first game as captain of England since the 2006 World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...

. England comfortably won the game 3–0. On 19 August 2008, Capello announced that John Terry would be named permanent captain for the second time in his career. On 20 August 2008, England drew 2–2 at Wembley with the Czech Republic
Czech Republic national football team
The Czech Republic national football team represents the Czech Republic in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of the Czech Republic, the governing body for football in the Czech Republic. Their current head coach is Michal Bílek...

.

England rounded off 2008 by beating Germany
Germany national football team
The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....

 2–1 on 19 November. A John Terry
John Terry
John George Terry is an English professional footballer. Terry plays in a centre back position and is the captain of Chelsea in the Premier League...

 header secured the win for England, in the 83rd minute, inflicting the first defeat Germany had suffered in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

 in 35 years.

2009

In the spring of 2009, England played two more friendlies, losing 2–0 to European champions Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...

 and beating Slovakia
Slovakia national football team
The Slovakia national football team represents Slovakia in association football and is controlled by the Slovak Football Association , the governing body for football in Slovakia. Slovakia's home stadium is Štadión Pasienky and their head coach is Vladimír Weiss...

 4–0. In the summer of 2009 England played another friendly against the Netherlands
Netherlands national football team
The Netherlands National Football Team represents the Netherlands in association football and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association , the governing body for football in the Netherlands...

, coming back from 2–0 down to secure a 2–2 draw away from home. Slovenia
Slovenia national football team
The Slovenia national football team is the national football team of Slovenia and is controlled by the Football Association of Slovenia. The team played their first match in 1992 after the split of Yugoslavia in 1991....

 were beaten 2–1 In Wembley in the same year. In November 2009, England were beaten 1–0 by Brazil
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...

 in Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...

, Capello's third defeat as England manager.

2010

In March 2010, England played a friendly against Egypt and beat the African champions 3–1. Two months later in the last home match before the World Cup they beat Mexico
Mexico national football team
The Mexican national football team represents Mexico in association football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation , the governing body for football in Mexico. Mexico's home stadium is the Estadio Azteca and their head coach is José Manuel de la Torre...

 by the same scoreline.

In May 2010, England played a friendly against Japan national football team
Japan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...

 Japan at UPC-Arena
UPC-Arena
The UPC-Arena in Graz, Styria, Austria, is the home of the football clubs SK Sturm Graz and Grazer AK.- History :...

, Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...

 and won 2–1. The two goals conceded by Japan were both own goals by Marcus Tanaka and Yuji Nakazawa
Yuji Nakazawa
is a Japanese football player who currently plays for J. League side Yokohama F. Marinos. He is a centre back. He is captain of both Yokohama F. Marinos and the Japan national football team. His nickname is "Bomber" because of his distinctive hairstyle...

 respectively.

After constant speculation linking him with the vacant managerial post at Internazionale, on 2 June 2010 Capello committed himself to the England job until at least after the 2012 European Championships.

Qualification

England opened Capello's first competitive campaign with a 2–0 victory over Andorra
Andorra national football team
The Andorra national football team represents Andorra in association football and is controlled by the Andorran Football Federation, the governing body for football in Andorra. The team has enjoyed very little success due to the Principality's tiny population, the fourth smallest of any UEFA...

, in Barcelona, on 6 September 2008. Four days later, on 10 September, England played Croatia
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...

, the team that had qualified for the previous competition (Euro 2008) at their expense. England won 4–1; Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...

's Theo Walcott
Theo Walcott
Theo James Walcott is an English footballer of Jamaican descent who plays for Arsenal and the England national team. Walcott is a product of the Southampton F.C. Academy. He is a striker who is usually deployed on the right wing as a wide forward to exploit his speed...

 was particularly impressive in scoring three goals. The next qualification game was at Wembley just over a month later, on 11 October, against Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan national football team
The Kazakhstan national football team represents Kazakhstan in international men's association football and is directed by Football Federation of Kazakhstan. They split from the Soviet Union national football team after independence in 1991 and joined the Asian Football Confederation's Central and...

. The game remained goalless at half-time, but England went on to win 5–1. A fourth straight win on 15 October made this England's best ever start to a World Cup qualifying campaign as they beat Belarus
Belarus national football team
The Belarus national football team represents Belarus in association football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Belarus, the governing body for football in Belarus. Belarus' home ground is Dinamo Stadium in Minsk...

 3–1.

On 1 April 2009, England beat Ukraine
Ukraine national football team
The Ukraine national football team is the national football team of Ukraine and is controlled by the Football Federation of Ukraine. After Ukrainian Independence and breakaway from the Soviet Union, they played their first match against Hungary on 29 April 1992...

 2–1 at Wembley. On 6 June, they travelled to Almaty
Almaty
Almaty , also known by its former names Verny and Alma-Ata , is the former capital of Kazakhstan and the nation's largest city, with a population of 1,348,500...

 to beat Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan national football team
The Kazakhstan national football team represents Kazakhstan in international men's association football and is directed by Football Federation of Kazakhstan. They split from the Soviet Union national football team after independence in 1991 and joined the Asian Football Confederation's Central and...

 4–0, and four days later, they returned to Wembley to beat Andorra again 6–0, making it seven wins out of seven in the qualification campaign. A notable feature of the campaign was the goalscoring form of of Wayne Rooney
Wayne Rooney
Wayne Mark Rooney is an English footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team...

: eight in seven games. With two in the friendly against Slovakia
Slovakia national football team
The Slovakia national football team represents Slovakia in association football and is controlled by the Slovak Football Association , the governing body for football in Slovakia. Slovakia's home stadium is Štadión Pasienky and their head coach is Vladimír Weiss...

 in March 2009, Rooney had scored ten goals in 8 England games.

On 9 September 2009, Capello successfully guided England to qualification to the 2010 World Cup following a 5–1 win at home to Croatia. England's hopes of a 100% record in their 2010 qualifying campaign were ended with a 0-1 defeat in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

 in the final away match. However, a 3-0 victory over Belarus
Belarus national football team
The Belarus national football team represents Belarus in association football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Belarus, the governing body for football in Belarus. Belarus' home ground is Dinamo Stadium in Minsk...

 confirmed England as the top scorers in the UEFA zone with 34 goals, 6 ahead of second top scorers Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...

.

Finals

England's build up to the World Cup started badly, with John Terry being stripped of the captaincy by Capello after his involvement in a tabloid scandal in February 2010. Terry's successor as captain, Rio Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand
Rio Gavin Ferdinand is an English footballer. He plays at centre back for Manchester United in the Premier League and for the England national football team...

, was injured in a training session prior to England's opening match, resulting in his withdrawal from the squad. England drew the first game 1–1 with the United States
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...

 due to an error by goalkeeper Robert Green
Robert Green
Robert Paul Green is an English footballer who plays for West Ham United and the England national football team as a goalkeeper.-Norwich City:...

, after which Capello declared the tournament Adidas Jabulani
Adidas Jabulani
The Jabulani is an Association football ball manufactured by Adidas. It was the official match ball for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.The ball is made from eight spherically molded panels and has a textured surface intended to improve aerodynamics...

 ball was "impossible to control". This was followed by a poor display against Algeria
Algeria national football team
The Algeria national football team , nicknamed الأفنــاك, Les Fennecs , represents Algeria in association football and is controlled by the Fédération Algérienne de Football. Algeria's home ground is the Stade 5 Juillet 1962 in Algiers and their head coach is Vahid Halilhodžić.Algeria has qualified...

 leading to a 0–0 draw and widespread criticism of both Capello and the England team. On 23 June, Capello led England into the round of 16 of the World Cup after they beat Slovenia
Slovenia national football team
The Slovenia national football team is the national football team of Slovenia and is controlled by the Football Association of Slovenia. The team played their first match in 1992 after the split of Yugoslavia in 1991....

 1–0. However they were beaten in their first knockout match 4–1 by Germany. With Germany leading 2–1, Frank Lampard
Frank Lampard
Frank James Lampard is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Chelsea and the England national team. He also holds the position of vice-captain for his club side...

 scored a 20-yard strike. However, while the ball bounced a yard over the German goal-line, the match officials failed to see it and award a goal. As England pressed forward in the second half, they conceded two counter-attack goals. Nevertheless, England's performance led to much criticism from fans, the media, and pundits alike.

After England's elimination Capello was criticized for imposing a strict military regime at England's Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein is the capital city of the Free State Province of South Africa; and, as the judicial capital of the nation, one of South Africa's three national capitals – the other two being Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Pretoria, the administrative capital.Bloemfontein is popularly and...

 training camp and not allowing his senior players to have tactical input. His 4-4-2 formation was derided as "outdated" with Steven Gerrard
Steven Gerrard
Steven George Gerrard MBE is an English footballer who plays for and captains Premier League club Liverpool. He also has 89 caps for the England national team. He has played much of his career in a centre midfielder role, but he has also been used as a second striker and right winger...

's positioning on the left of midfield also criticized. Capello's squad selection was questioned, with the selection of an unfit Ledley King
Ledley King
Ledley Brenton King is an English footballer who plays for Tottenham Hotspur. He is the longest serving player at the club and captained Spurs since 2005. He is currently contracted to Tottenham until 2012...

 and out of form Emile Heskey
Emile Heskey
Emile William Ivanhoe Heskey is an English footballer who plays for Aston Villa as a striker.Born in Leicester, Heskey started his career with hometown club Leicester City after progressing through their youth system, making his first team debut in 1995...

, as well as the surprising omission of Theo Walcott
Theo Walcott
Theo James Walcott is an English footballer of Jamaican descent who plays for Arsenal and the England national team. Walcott is a product of the Southampton F.C. Academy. He is a striker who is usually deployed on the right wing as a wide forward to exploit his speed...

 also coming under fire. Capello's indecision over his starting goalkeeper was cited as a reason for Robert Green's error in England's opening match with the United States.

On 2 July 2010, the Football Association announced that Capello would remain as the manager of the England national team following speculation over his future following the World Cup 2010.

Qualification

England kicked off their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign
UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine...

 with two wins, 4–0 against Bulgaria
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...

 and 3–1 away against Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...

, yet could only draw 0-0 against group leaders Montenegro
Montenegro national football team
The Montenegro national football team represents Montenegro in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Montenegro, the governing body for football in Montenegro...

 at Wembley
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...

. Capello made some changes afterwards, with Ferdinand and Gerrard out of the picture. John Terry was reinstated as captain to much criticism. The traditional 4–4–2 was transformed to 4–3–3 with Darren Bent
Darren Bent
Darren Ashley Bent is an English footballer who plays for Aston Villa as a striker.Bent started his career with Ipswich Town. After progressing through their youth system he made his first team debut in 2001. He made 122 appearances and scored 48 goals in the league for Ipswich, before joining...

 as centre forward and Rooney as a left-sided forward. The result has been successful thus far, as England beat Wales 2–0 at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...

 on 26 March 2011. England's next game was at Wembley against Switzerland on 4 June 2011, which they recovered from a 0-2 deficit to draw 2–2 with goals from Frank Lampard and Ashley Young. After a narrow 1–0 against Wales at Wembley Capello claimed that several England players were "mentally fragile" and suggested he intended to reinvent his squad once Euro 2012 qualification had been sealed. On October 7th 2011, England qualified for the European Championships
UEFA European Football Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA . Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current...

 with a 2-2 draw in Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...

. England completed their campaign with a record of 5 wins, 3 ties and no defeats. England completed an unbeaten 2011 with 1-0 friendly victories over Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...

 and Sweden
Sweden national football team
The Swedish national football team represents Sweden in association football and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body for Football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Råsunda Stadium in Stockholms län and their head coach is Erik Hamrén. Sweden made their first...

 in November 2011.

Player

|-
|1963–64||rowspan="4"|SPAL
Spal 1907
SPAL 1907 is an Italian football club, based in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna. The club was founded in 1907 as Società Polisportiva Ars et Labor and was refounded in 2005....

||Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

||4||0||||||||||||
|-
|1964–65
Serie B 1964-65
-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005...

||Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...

||9||0||||||||||||
|-
|1965–66
Serie A 1965-66
-Final classification:-Results:-References:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:* :it:Classifica calcio Serie A italiana 1966 - Italian version with pictures and info....

||rowspan="2"|Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

||20||1||||||||||||
|-
|1966–67
Serie A 1966-67
Serie A 1966-67 season was won by Juventus, it was their second scudetto of the 1960s. The season was closely contested and went down to the final day of the season; Inter were left needing just a draw or having Juventus not beat Lazio to win the title. However, Inter lost 1-0 on the final day to...

||16||2||||||||||||
|-
|1967–68
Serie A 1967-68
Serie A 1967-68 season was won by A.C. Milan.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||rowspan="3"|Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

||rowspan="3"|Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

||11||1||||||||||||
|-
|1968–69
Serie A 1968-69
The 1968/1969 Serie A season was won by A.C. Fiorentina.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||25||6||||||||||||
|-
|1969–70
Serie A 1969-70
The 1969/1970 Serie A season was won by Cagliari Calcio.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||26||4||||||||||||
|-
|1970–71
Serie A 1970-71
The 1970/1971 Serie A season was won by F.C. Internazionale Milano.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||rowspan="6"|Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...

||rowspan="6"|Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

||27||5||||||||||||
|-
|1971–72
Serie A 1971-72
The 1971/1972 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||29||9||||||||||||
|-
|1972–73
Serie A 1972-73
The 1972/1973 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||27||3||||||||||||
|-
|1973–74
Serie A 1973-74
The 1973/1974 Serie A season was won by S.S. Lazio.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||27||4||||||||||||
|-
|1974–75
Serie A 1974-75
The 1974/1975 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||28||3||||||||||||
|-
|1975–76
Serie A 1975-76
The 1975/1976 Serie A season was won by Torino Calcio.-Classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||27||3||||||||||||
|-
|1976–77
Serie A 1976-77
The 1976/1977 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||rowspan="4"|Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

||rowspan="4"|Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

||26||1||||||||||||
|-
|1977–78
Serie A 1977-78
The 1977/1978 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

||28||3||||||||||||
|-
|1978–79||8||0||||||||||||
|-
|1979–80
Serie A 1979-80
The 1979/1980 Serie A season was the 50th edition of Serie A, the top-level football competition in Italy. The championship was won by F.C. Internazionale Milano.-Final classification:-References:...

||3||0||||||||||||
341||45||||||||||||
341||45||||||||||||
|-
|1972||6||1
|-
|1973||8||3
|-
|1974||6||1
|-
|1975||4||1
|-
|1976||8||2
|-
!Total||32||8
|}

Manager

at eam rom o Record
G W D L Win %
 Italy Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

1991 1996
 Spain Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

1996 1997
 Italy Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...

1997 1998
 Italy Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

1999 2004
 Italy Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...

2004 2006
 Spain Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...

2006 2007
 England England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...

2008 Present
Total

Personal life

Capello was born in 1946 in San Canzian d'Isonzo
San Canzian d'Isonzo
San Canzian d'Isonzo is a comune in the province of Gorizia, in Friuli – Venezia Giulia, Italy.The small town is situated about 30 kilometers from Gorizia, the capital of the province, and not too far west of the important port of Trieste...

, Friuli-Venezia Giulia to Guerrino and Evelina Capello. Capello is a devout Catholic who prays twice a day. Both his father, a schoolteacher, and uncle played football, and Capello has spent his entire adult life involved with the sport. He has been married to his wife Laura, whom he first met on a bus as a teenager, for over 40 years. He is represented by his son Pierfilippo, who acts as his agent. It is thought that The Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...

 welcomed the stable family life that Capello brings to the job, in contrast to the more colourful antics of his predecessors which served as fodder for the media. However, it has been highlighted that Capello has made a number of controversial comments over the years, such as praising Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...

, and that the FA will be hoping he learns to keep his opinions to himself.

In January 2008, Italian police
Italian police
Law enforcement in Italy is provided by eight separate police forces, six of which are national groups in Italy.During 2005 in Italy, the number of active police officers from all agencies totaled 324,339, the highest number in the European Union both overall and per capita, twice the number of...

 announced that they were launching an investigation into tax irregularities by Capello. However, the probe has been dismissed as routine by Capello's spokesmen who said this was part of a wider investigation into a number of wealthy Italians. The FA revealed that they had known about the upcoming probe when they had appointed Capello, and expected no charges to be brought.

Art collection

Capello is a self-confessed fine art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....

 enthusiast. Over the years, he has acquired a number of works, and his art collection is estimated to be worth £17 million. His favourite artist is reportedly Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky was an influential Russian painter and art theorist. He is credited with painting the first purely-abstract works. Born in Moscow, Kandinsky spent his childhood in Odessa. He enrolled at the University of Moscow, studying law and economics...

.

As a player

Roma:
  • Coppa Italia
    Coppa Italia
    The Coppa Italia is an Italian football annual cup competition. Its first edition was held in 1922, but the second champions were not crowned until 1936. Roma and Juventus lead the way with nine wins. Roma has contested more finals, 16, while Torino and Juventus follow with 13...

     (1): 1968–69


Juventus:
  • Serie A
    Serie A
    Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

     (3): 1971–72
    Serie A 1971-72
    The 1971/1972 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

    , 1972–73
    Serie A 1972-73
    The 1972/1973 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

    , 1974–75
    Serie A 1974-75
    The 1974/1975 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C..-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...



Milan:
  • Serie A
    Serie A
    Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

     (1): 1978–79
    Serie A 1978-79
    The 1978/1979 Serie A season was won by A.C. Milan.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...

  • Coppa Italia
    Coppa Italia
    The Coppa Italia is an Italian football annual cup competition. Its first edition was held in 1922, but the second champions were not crowned until 1936. Roma and Juventus lead the way with nine wins. Roma has contested more finals, 16, while Torino and Juventus follow with 13...

     (1): 1976–77

As a coach

Milan:
  • Serie A
    Serie A
    Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

     (4): 1991–92
    Serie A 1991-92
    During this season, under the guidance of Fabio Capello, AC Milan completed a remarkable unbeaten season, a run that eventually totalled 58 games.- Final classification :- Results :-Top scorers:25 goals* Marco van Basten 18 goals...

    , 1992–93, 1993–94
    Serie A 1993-94
    The 1993–94 Serie A was won by A.C. Milan, being the 14th title for the rossoneri.-Final classification:-Results:-Top scorers:23 goals* Giuseppe Signori 18 goals* Gianfranco Zola 17 goals* Roberto Baggio...

    , 1995–96
    Serie A 1995-96
    The 1995–96 Serie A title was won by A.C. Milan , with Juventus finishing as runners-up.-Final classification:-Results:-Top scorers:24 goals* Igor Protti...

  • Supercoppa Italiana
    Supercoppa Italiana
    The Supercoppa Italiana is a pre-season football competition held the week before the season begins in Italy every year. It is contested by the winners of the Serie A and the Coppa Italia in the previous season, as a curtain raiser to the new season. It is usually played at the home of the Serie A...

     (3): 1992
    1992 Supercoppa Italiana
    The 1992 Supercoppa Italiana was a match played by the 1991–92 Serie A winners Milan and 1991–92 Coppa Italia winners Parma. It took place on 30 August 1992 at the San Siro in Milan, Italy. A.C...

    , 1993
    1993 Supercoppa Italiana
    The 1993 Supercoppa Italiana was a match played by the 1992–93 Serie A winners Milan and 1992–93 Coppa Italia winners Torino. It took place on 21 August 1993 at the RFK Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C., USA...

    , 1994
    1994 Supercoppa Italiana
    The 1994 Supercoppa Italiana was a match played by the 1993–94 Serie A winners Milan and 1993–94 Coppa Italia winners Sampdoria. It took place on 28 August 1994 at the San Siro in Milan, Italy. A.C...

  • UEFA Champions League
    UEFA Champions League
    The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

     (1): 1993–94
  • European Super Cup
    European Super Cup
    The UEFA Super Cup is an annual football game between the reigning champions of the two cup competitions organized by UEFA: the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League...

     (1): 1994
  • Coppa Italia Primavera
    Coppa Italia Primavera
    The Coppa Italia Primavera is an Italian football competition played for by youth teams from Campionato Primavera. All players are under 20 of age. The first edition was held in the 1972-73 season....

     (1): 1984–85


Roma:
  • Serie A
    Serie A
    Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

     (1): 2000–01
    Serie A 2000-01
    In the 2000-01 season, Serie A, the major football Italian professional league, was composed by 18 teams, for the 13th consecutive time from season 1988-89....

  • Supercoppa Italiana
    Supercoppa Italiana
    The Supercoppa Italiana is a pre-season football competition held the week before the season begins in Italy every year. It is contested by the winners of the Serie A and the Coppa Italia in the previous season, as a curtain raiser to the new season. It is usually played at the home of the Serie A...

     (1): 2001
    2001 Supercoppa Italiana
    The 2001 Supercoppa Italiana was a match played by Serie A 2000-01 winners Roma and Coppa Italia 2000-01 winners Fiorentina.The match took place on 19 August 2001 in Stadio Olimpico, Rome and resulted in a 3-0 victory for Roma....



Juventus:
  • Serie A
    Serie A
    Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...

     (2): 2004–05
    Serie A 2004-05
    In the 2004–05 season, the Serie A, the highest professional football league in Italy, was composed of 20 teams for the first time in several years....

    , 2005–06
    Serie A 2005-06
    In the 2005–06 season, Serie A, the major professional football league in Italian, was contested for the second year in a row by 20 teams. The league commenced on August 28, 2005 and finished on May 14, 2006...

     (both revoked)


Real Madrid:
  • La Liga
    La Liga
    The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...

     (2): 1996–97, 2006–07

Individual

  • Serie A Coach of the Year
    Serie A Coach of the Year
    The Serie A Coach of the Year is a yearly award organized by the Italian Footballers' Association given to the coach who has been considered to have performed the best over the previous Serie A season. The award is part of the "Oscar del Calcio" awards event...

    : 2005
  • BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award
    BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award
    The BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award is an award given annually as part of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony each December. The award is given to the coach who was considered to have made the most substantative contribution to British sport in that year. The award is...

    : 2009

External links

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