News:Fabio Capello's appointment as the new England coach will be confirmed today after face-to-face talks with the English FA chief executive, Brian Barwick, yesterday concluded with the Italian agreeing in principle to succeed Steve McClaren.
The former AC Milan coach has not formally been offered the post but, subject to approval from the FA board and final negotiations between the FA and his advisers, his appointment appears a formality. Capello returned to Italy last night to honour a prior commitment having arrived earlier in the day for three hours of talks at Wembley with Barwick and the FA's director of football, Trevor Brooking, which left both parties in little doubt that a formal agreement can be reached rapidly.
Capello's son Pierfilippo and another lawyer representing the Italian remained in London last night to work through the fine print of his contract, thought to be a two-and-a-half year deal worth around £4 million a year, with the FA's company secretary, Simon Johnson.
The FA's director of communications, Adrian Bevington, confirmed that talks had taken place and gone well: "I'm pleased to say that these discussions were extremely positive and without any problems," he said. "Fabio has returned to Italy to honour a prior commitment. Understandably, further talks are now taking place between Fabio's advisers and ourselves."
Barwick is expected to propose Capello formally to the FA board via a conference call today. The board retains the power to veto any appointment but key board members, including the Manchester United chief executive, David Gill, Dave Richards and Lord Mawhinney, have been kept informed throughout the process and it is highly unlikely there will be any objections.
The FA party was hugely impressed by Capello's plans for the job and the freshness of his ideas for the first-team set-up. Capello made it clear to his advisers that he was similarly enthusiastic about the opportunity being offered to him.
The make-up of the Italian's back-room staff was not discussed in detail yesterday but sources close to Capello indicated that he is likely to bring in several figures who have been close to him throughout his coaching career. His preferred assistant is likely to be Italo Galbiati, who has been at Capello's side in all four of his club jobs at Milan, Roma, Juventus and Real Madrid. The goalkeeping coach Franco Tancredi, who worked with Capello at Roma, Juventus and Madrid is also favoured, as is the fitness trainer Massimo Neri.
Franco Baldini, Capello's general manager at Roma may also be considered but he is understood to be considering an offer to become a director of football at a Premier League club and it is unclear what role he would play within the England set-up.
Guardian Service
