The media reaction to the impending arrival of Fabio Capello seems rather familiar to the wave of enthusiasm that greeted Sven-Goran Eriksson’s appointment as England manager – a man in a smart suit with a record of success in Italian and European football and someone with a different style to his predecessors (Eriksson was ‘tactically astute’ while Capello is a ‘disciplinarian’).

When Eriksson was appointed I bored friends and colleagues with my rather pessimistic take on the Swede’s likelihood of success at England and I’m afraid I’m going to do the same with Capello. So, as a balance to the euphoria, here are 10 reasons to be sceptical of Don Fabio’s chances with England:

1. The best reason for appointing Capello is his record. Yes, Capello has won league titles with AC Milan, Juventus, Roma and Real Madrid and if he were now the coach of Brazil I would put my money on them winning the next World Cup. Likewise I am sure that he would perform well in England with Chelsea or Manchester United. But Capello has never been in the position of having to win with a mediocre team and no transfer budget which is exactly what the FA are asking him to do. In this respect he is in uncharted waters.

2. I’ve said it before – and I’ll say it again: there is a huge risk in appointing an England manager who doesn’t speak English. As well as dealing with a totally different football culture to England and Spain, Capello will have the handicap of not being able to communicate directly with anyone on the team. Think about it.

3. Not being able to communicate directly with any of the Premier League managers will be a major drawback when it comes to those necessary chats about availability for friendly matches. “Buongiorno Signor Ferguson…”

4. … which is hardly going to be helped by him appointing Italian coaching staff. If the reports are true, this is a move which will surely alienate some potential sources of solid advice and help from, say, the likes of current goalkeeping coach Ray Clemence. Wouldn’t someone like David Platt (an Italian speaker who has been part of the FA coaching set-up) or Italophile ex-England player like Ray Wilkins be more use than a Serie A functionary such as Franco Baldini? (By the way, what on earth is Baldini going to do at the FA? He was a ‘Direttore Sportivo’ at Roma which meant he was in charge of player contracts and transfer dealings along with the various ‘political’ tasks that are considered indispensable at Italian clubs. He has zero coaching experience).

5. Temper, temper. When Capello loses it, he really loses it. England have never had a manager like that and it will be fascinating (and amusing) to see how the players and media react to Capello when he goes all ‘furibondo’ on them. The phrase “hairdryer treatment” doesn’t come close…

6. Tactics. Apart from the spectacular Milan team he inherited from Arrigo Sacchi, Capello’s success has been built around tight defending, a solid and patient midfield and a reliance on sparks of genius up-front. English players grow up bursting to get forward and attack – Capello, like Eriksson, will have to try and restrain that instinct. His teams have always played Italian style football – it will be fascinating (but probably not amusing) to see if this current crop of England players can adapt to Capello’s way of playing. It is another question entirely if the best way to bring success to English footballers is to try to make them play like Italians…

7. Italian coaches don’t travel well. Apart from Giovanni Trapattoni’s brief moment at Bayern Munich can you name an Italian coach who has been truly successful outside of southern Europe?

8. Does he rate English players? Capello has signed players from all over the world in his career – guess how many English players he has signed? That’s right – nulla.

9. There is probably a good reason for the above — He’s not daft, how many English players enjoyed success playing under Italian coaches?

10. The call of ‘Mamma Italia’. Here is a scenario – the patriotic and conservative Italian Capello finds it hard to settle in England. Next summer Italy go out in the first round of Euro 2008 and sack Roberto Donadoni. The favourite for the Azzurri job is…?

Simon Evans was Reuters sports correspondent in Milan from 1999 to February this year, when he moved to Miami

FILE PHOTO: Capello, then at Juventus, looks at his watch during the Italian serie A soccer match against Palermo at the Delle Alpi stadium in Turin, May 7, 2006. REUTERS/Tony Gentile