Saturday, February 27, 2010

Terry will not lead England under Capello

John Terry
Terry cannot expect to get the armband back under Capello's reign

England coach Fabio Capello says John Terry will not regain the captaincy while he is in charge of the team.

Terry was stripped of the role after allegations about his private life, with Rio Ferdinand set to take over.

"Until the World Cup, Terry will not be the captain again. After the World Cup? If I remain as England manager? I think not," said Capello.

"I ask the captain to set an example for young people. What he did was not good. I told him this, he understood."

Manchester City's Wayne Bridge ruled himself out of England contention following allegations that former Chelsea team-mate Terry had an affair with his ex-girlfriend.

606: DEBATE

Capello named Terry in the squad for Wednesday's friendly with Egypt, and said that he would have been happy to pick Bridge as well if he had made himself available.

"I took the decision only [to take away the captaincy] because of what happened with Wayne Bridge, nothing else," he said.

"I didn't ever consider taking John Terry out of the squad, just as I didn't decide to take Wayne Bridge out. And I don't believe the other players will have lost respect for him because they know his leadership qualities."

Having been set to take over as captain, Manchester United's Ferdinand will miss the Egypt game at Wembley because of a back injury. That means Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard will deputise in his absence.

Capello, meanwhile, said he did not understand the importance put on the captaincy role in English football.

"In Spain or Italy, the captain is the oldest player or the one with the most caps," the Italian said.

"Here it is different. You look at the captain in a different way.

"To me, being a leader is more important than being the captain. John Terry is a leader. I have asked him to be the same. He will be the same. He will be a leader without wearing the armband."

Capello said has not given up hope that Bridge may change his mind and feature in his second World Cup.

"We have three months to change the decision," said Capello.

"I opened the door to all players and now it is open in future for Wayne Bridge."

Asked if he agreed with the left back that it was in England's best interests for Bridge to rule himself out, Capello said: "No. It's like an injury now.

"Bridge has a different vision of life that he thinks it's better for him to stay out of the team - this is the opinion of the player, I think he can stay in the squad without problems," said Capello, who played for Italy at the 1974 World Cup.

"In my life as a player I played one World Cup - it's not easy to play at the World Cup, you often get one chance. He played in (2002) and this is another chance for him."

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