There is proof at last that Fabio Capello is capable of compromise. The England manager has listened to Liverpool's plea that Steven Gerrard should not be involved in Saturday's friendly with Brazil in Doha. There is a chance, however, that the midfielder will play a part in his club's game against Birmingham City despite his recent adductor muscle injury.
These are circumstances in which Capello could have earned easy applause by frogmarching him to the departures lounge and on to the flight for Qatar. It has, after all, been his mission to demonstrate that international games, including friendlies, count for at least as much as club fixtures. In addition, he would have wanted Gerrard for a game against a country ranked first in the world.
It has been made clear that there has not been any sort of deal, because Capello will be uneasy about Premier League managers seeking a "Gerrard dispensation", particularly since Chelsea's Ashley Cole and Portsmouth's David James have both been omitted due to fitness concerns.
There may be some self-interest in Capello's actions. He will see that it is to his own long-term advantage that the Liverpool midfielder should be restored to health. Even his club may not call on Gerrard from the start against Birmingham despite the fact that Rafael BenÃtez has to revive his faltering side.
Capello's sidelining of footballers, however, is not necessarily founded on compassion. Once again Michael Owen has been overlooked, putting his World Cup hopes in terminal condition. The manager recently called the Manchester United forward his "tormentor" because of the endless public discussion of the striker's involvement or lack of it.
The Italian's beef is not so much with Owen as with those who do not see the logic of his stance. Capello demands evidence before he will enlist anyone and, despite the injury that ruled out Dimitar Berbatov, United still did not have any use for the striker until they had fallen behind to Chelsea yesterday. He was brought on with seven minutes remaining.
Given Capello's general policy, there was inevitability about the call-up for Darren Bent, who missed a penalty against his former club Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday but has scored eight goals for Sunderland this season. Forwards do remain an issue for Capello and that is underlined now that the injured Emile Heskey will not be on the scene to enjoy the so far fruitful partnership with Wayne Roney in Doha.
With the stature of Brazil in mind, Capello has not been too experimental in his selections. Stephen Warnock, however, is included in the absence of Cole. There is also a berth for Tom Huddlestone, who scored spectacularly for Tottenham before the watching manager on Saturday. David Beckham is included and could win his 116th cap, although the midfielder will be pulled out of the squad should LA Galaxy qualify for the MLS Conference final.
These are circumstances in which Capello could have earned easy applause by frogmarching him to the departures lounge and on to the flight for Qatar. It has, after all, been his mission to demonstrate that international games, including friendlies, count for at least as much as club fixtures. In addition, he would have wanted Gerrard for a game against a country ranked first in the world.
It has been made clear that there has not been any sort of deal, because Capello will be uneasy about Premier League managers seeking a "Gerrard dispensation", particularly since Chelsea's Ashley Cole and Portsmouth's David James have both been omitted due to fitness concerns.
There may be some self-interest in Capello's actions. He will see that it is to his own long-term advantage that the Liverpool midfielder should be restored to health. Even his club may not call on Gerrard from the start against Birmingham despite the fact that Rafael BenÃtez has to revive his faltering side.
Capello's sidelining of footballers, however, is not necessarily founded on compassion. Once again Michael Owen has been overlooked, putting his World Cup hopes in terminal condition. The manager recently called the Manchester United forward his "tormentor" because of the endless public discussion of the striker's involvement or lack of it.
The Italian's beef is not so much with Owen as with those who do not see the logic of his stance. Capello demands evidence before he will enlist anyone and, despite the injury that ruled out Dimitar Berbatov, United still did not have any use for the striker until they had fallen behind to Chelsea yesterday. He was brought on with seven minutes remaining.
Given Capello's general policy, there was inevitability about the call-up for Darren Bent, who missed a penalty against his former club Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday but has scored eight goals for Sunderland this season. Forwards do remain an issue for Capello and that is underlined now that the injured Emile Heskey will not be on the scene to enjoy the so far fruitful partnership with Wayne Roney in Doha.
With the stature of Brazil in mind, Capello has not been too experimental in his selections. Stephen Warnock, however, is included in the absence of Cole. There is also a berth for Tom Huddlestone, who scored spectacularly for Tottenham before the watching manager on Saturday. David Beckham is included and could win his 116th cap, although the midfielder will be pulled out of the squad should LA Galaxy qualify for the MLS Conference final.
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