FABIO Capello would have willingly walked away from his
£6million a year England job if there had been any dissent among
the FA’s big hitters.
The Italian – who could have expected a £12m windfall
for the remaining two years of his contract – told the Club England
board, who had the final say on his future, that compensation would
not have been an issue.
If they had wanted to get rid of him, then he would
have gone without a fight – accepting that the country had lost
faith in him.
A Capello confidant revealed: “Fabio
needed to have the full backing of his employers. If that wasn’t
the case, then he was prepared to leave. It wouldn’t have been a
case of
of negotiating a huge settlement. “He even told them to
pay him what they thought was right and if there was no money
available now they could pay him over five years.”
The Club England chairman Sir Dave Richards, managing
director Adrian Bevington, the FA’s general secretary Alex Horne
and Sir Trevor Brooking, the FA’s director of football development,
were unanimous that 64-year-old Capello was still the right man for
the job.
Soundings amongst members of the full FA board also
indicated their support for Capello.
It’s believed that Brooking was one of the prime movers
in the decision to keep Capello on, pointing out that the well of
English talent has dried up.
Capello is keen to bring England out of the dark ages,
admitting that he also has his own reputation to repair.
He said: “When you lose, your reputation is always
damaged. I feel that about myself right now. But we have to
recover. I am driven by the challenge.”