No, not Fabio Capello. Steven Gerrard.
Well supported last night by Gareth Barry, skipper Gerrard
looked as he had against both Hungary and Bulgaria.
Reinvigorated and playing the sort of pivotal role in midfield
that has been the hallmark of all his finest hours for
Liverpool.
And released from the purgatory of having to play out of
position on the left. Relaxed, spreading the ball around with ease
and linking well with Wayne Rooney, he had all the appearance of a
man released from a long spell behind bars.
He topped his display with a superbly-timed pass for England's
killer second from Adam Johnson. So how can boss Capello disrupt
the Gerrard-Barry axis if he wants to take the team forward?
In particular, what does the Italian do when Frank Lampard is
available for next month's Euro 2012 qualifier against
Montenegro?
Barry may not be ideal but his undemanding presence in midfield
does bring the best out of Gerrard. And, as I said after the Reds
star's inspired two-goal display against Hungary at Wembley, how
can the England manager give the captain's armband back to Rio
Ferdinand?
Returning Lampard to the team and restoring Ferdinand to the
captaincy would be a step back in time when Capello should be
breaking ties to an inglorious past.
So, in the end, two games that could well have decided Capello's
future have passed without worry. The hangman's noose can be safely
returned to the drawer. And the only problem now for Capello is
keeping his hands off the team and making unnecessary changes.
Yes, he lost Theo Walcott with an ankle injury after just nine
minutes - yet even this blow may work in Capello's favour. In
Walcott's place came sub Johnson, the multi-talented Manchester
City winger. A left-footer by choice, he looks at home on either
flank and showed again that he can - and should - have a large part
to play in England's future.
At 23, he is also the ideal age to mould into this side and the
way he took his goal suggested that here is a man to stay.
Running into space and on to Gerrard's pass, he kept his head to
round keeper Diego Benaglio and hammer home from a tight angle.
While he was doing this, Walcott was in hospital having an X-ray
taken of his right ankle.
International futures can be decided in such ways. So here we
have another paradox of Capello's tenure. Refusing to play Joe Hart
in South Africa, he has now seen him blossom into England's No 1 in
a matter of months. Except he has not blossomed at all. He should
have been first choice at the World Cup finals.
And now Johnson, who many of us said should have gone to South
Africa, has staked his place in the side purely because of injury
to the man Capello originally chose to play instead of him.
It's what they call serendipity - arriving at the right choice
through accident. This was supposed to be the toughtest match of
the qualifying group and England's first real test since their
dismal summer safari. But it was yet another fixture historically
tilted heavily in England's favour, the Three Lions losing just
once in 17 games against the Swiss since 1947.
That came here in Basel when Ron Greenwood offered to resign
after his side were beaten 2-1 in a World Cup qualifier in 1981. A
similar result here and England fans would have been expecting the
same from Capello. But the Swiss played into England's hands,
failing to muster a shot on target in the entire first half.
England were left to do much as they pleased and could have led
by more than just the one goal they managed from Rooney.
Indeed, had Jermain Defoe showed the same clinical finishing
that had seen him score a hat-trick against Bulgaria last Friday,
he could well have had another by the interval.
Switzerland, though, upped the ante after the break and had
England's defence under real pressure at times.
The back four creaked and you wondered what a better team might
have done against them. In fact, you only had to go back to Germany
in Bloemfontein.
But Ottmar Hitzfeld's side cut their own throats on 65 minutes,
when Stephan Lichtsteiner saw red.
Johnson then gave England a 2-0 lead, the hosts hit back through
sub Xherdan Shaqiri's cracker before Darren Bent completed a
competent win for an under-pressure manager.
So England are well on their way to Poland and Ukraine, where
superior teams will wait with serious questions to ask.
For the moment, Capello has some to ask of himself. The small
matter of Lampard and Ferdinand for starters.
