And people tell me writing about Italian soccer is glamorous…
Last night I spent five hours at Milan’s Linate airport hoping for a chance to ask Fabio Capello whether he had held talks with the FA about the England job.
I had been tipped off that Capello was flying in from Madrid and was landing at 1800 so my photographer and I raced off in the hope of securing a scoop. Only then did we realise there was no plane from Spain due to land at that time. We looked out for private jets while making calls to airlines, police and sources and came to the conclusion he was most likely to be arriving after 2200.
After several hours, and a couple of beers and espressos to keep us awake in what is a very dull airport, we were still standing outside the arrivals gate waiting for the trademark spectacles to appear.
Hundreds of passengers came and went but there was no Capello. It was a calculated gamble that didn’t pay off — a bit like the FA’s attempts to woo Jose Mourinho before he turned down the chance to manage a beleaguered England.
Our five hours though were nothing compared to the wait Capello has endured in order to have a shot at coaching the Three Lions.
The 61-year-old, who has won titles at AC Milan, Real Madrid, AS Roma and Juventus, has often spoken of his desire to take on “the biggest job in the world” and was in the frame in 2000 before Sven-Goran Eriksson was appointed.
When Eriksson’s departure was announced in 2006, Capello was busy winning scudettos with Juventus and was unaware that only months later the club would be relegated in a match-fixing scandal and he would be available again.
Having been sacked by Real in June despite winning another championship, the man the Italians call ‘Don Fabio’ is still waiting for a call and this time it looks as if he might just get it.
Good things come to those who wait, but not at Milan airport.
Mark Meadows, Reuters Sports Correspondent in Milan
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12 comments so far
Shouldn’t that be ’scudetti’, Mark?
- Posted by KevInteresting point. Of course the plural in Italian is scudetti but in English people tend to say scudettos so it is clear we mean more than one.
- Posted by Mark MeadowsWe eat two pizzas when in fact it should be pizze. However a single strand of spaghetti even here is rarely dubbed a spaghetto.
Im sure Fabio is wondering why ‘Went’ is the past participle of ‘Go’ as he furiously crams his English ready for the ‘interview’
Mark, I sure he will have a fluent bilingual Italian-English translator for the interview, I am just not entirely convinced that person will be as effective in the dressing room. Maybe the lads should start taking up Italian to meet Don Capello halfway. Chi nor crolla traffordista e, ole!
- Posted by Red Devilwell i do think he will make it to the england job but not sure if he will have an impact. english game is diffrent and i don think he will be able to handle media. along with a translator he may need some one to handle media…maybe mourinho
- Posted by jayadeepjayadeep that’s hilarious. mourinho to go back to his old translating job! does he speak italian?
- Posted by LondonHe rang rings round me at the airport so I think he can handle the English media. Eriksson will have filled him in on the pitfalls and Capello doesnt have a closet packed with scantily clad skeltons like the Swede.
- Posted by Mark MeadowsThe translator issue is interesting and of course that’s how Mourinho started…maybe I should ask Don Fabio is he needs an assistant and my dream of managing Blackpool one day could be mine!
Capello seems “really” interested for being England Manager… It’s not okay for the FA. In many occasions, they prefer to give it this hot seat for those who wait and keep silent, thats why Silence is Golden
- Posted by Andy GultomCapello has had great success as a coach, hopefully the England job doesnt tarnish all that success. They are a cursed side that only seem to be getting worse as the talent pool slowly degrades. At least the standards have been lowered, that should help.
http://www.futbolink.wordpress.com
- Posted by wrcFabio has good enough English and more than enough soccer know-how to spare. His charisma alone can rule the dressing room.
- Posted by Jon BramleyThe more I learn about Capello the more excited I am about what is likely to happen off the pitch rather than on it.The games may be dull but team selection and the fallout from bruised egos amongst the players will be a sports editor’s dream.
- Posted by Wizard of OddsThe more I learn about Capello the more convinced I am that he’s not right for the job. He’s just another Eriksson — right down to the designer glasses. His teams play stifling football and I think it’s a real shame.
- Posted by davex[...] Waiting in van for Don Fabio (Reuters Soccer Blog) [...]
- Posted by Pitch Invasion · It’s in the (inter)net! (December 15)