Capello Makes A Case For Common Sense

Capello left because he was fed up. I am fed up. Why? Because there is an all-too-prevalent view amongst employers and the media that you are just one mistake away from getting kicked out.

As much as I dislike John Terry, he has not been found guilty. Because of that, the FA had no place superseding the wishes of Fabio: if Terry has lost the respect of the dressing room then his continued captaincy is a matter for Capello to decide on, not the bigwigs who rarely meet the team. Arguably Terry shouldn’t have been in the role anyway given the Wayne Bridge ‘affair’, but the fact was he was entrusted with the job and shouldn’t have been subject to such a knee-jerk reaction.

Capello said he felt ‘insulted’

The ‘resignation’ culture has spread throughout sport in the last year or two. Just look back to Lord Triesman, the former Chairman of both the FA and the unsuccessful 2018 World Cup bid. He accused Spain and Russia of plotting to bribe referees, but did it in private. The result? Resignation. In the end, FIFA saw it as enough of a possibility to warrant an investigation.

But it’s not just in the boardrooms of sporting institutions that common sense has apparently disappeared. In the last few weeks cabinet member Chris Huhne was subject to a vitriolic media storm in the wake of a driving charge that he vehemently denies. Again, resignation.

It’s not even confined to the UK. Remember Dominique Strauss-Kahn? Allegations flew in from various sources; allegations that never made it to court. I’m not saying he’s clean, but the furore whipped up around the case was so intense that he was effectively branded with his crimes. He lost his job as well.

Charges were dropped, but Strauss-Kahn still lost his job

As Capello now cuts all ties with English football, he is making a statement about the way things are. Capello made an error criticising the fact that the FA did not consult him, but everyone makes mistakes. Politics is one thing; we almost expect it to be like this. But football? Have some common sense.