Jags injury forces Capello into making captaincy call over Gerrard and Rio
Published 23:00 08/10/10 By Martin Lipton
Fabio Capello was faced with making the big call on the England captaincy last night – after losing Phil Jagielka to injury.
Capello had been preparing to leave out skipper Rio Ferdinand for the Euro 2012 qualifier with Montenegro in order to partner the Everton centre-half with fit-again Chelsea ace John Terry.
Jagielka impressed with his displays against Bulgaria and Switzerland last month.
But he was forced to pull out of the end of yesterday’s practice match at London Colney after suffering a tight hamstring half-way through the session.
Jagielka was sent back to Merseyside, with Bolton’s Gary Cahill, initially left out by Capello despite making his debut in the win over Bulgaria, handed an emergency call-up.
And while that will give Ferdinand a reprieve, it also means Capello has to decide whether to give the Manchester United defender the armband back or stick with Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard, who has finally started to grow into the England captaincy role.
Ferdinand would be devastated if he were overlooked for the skipper’s duties after missing the World Cup through a knee ligament injury.
Capello, though, still has concerns with Ferdinand, who has made just four club starts this term.
