Capello furious with Cole and Rooney despite win over Andorra
Sunday, 07 Sep 2008 22:01
Fabio Capello faces the biggest test of his reign against Croatia on Wednesday in Zagreb.
Fabio Capello has revealed he had a blazing row with Wayne Rooney and Joe Cole during England's 2-0 win over Andorra.
Chelsea midfielder Cole came off the bench to score twice in six minutes to spare England's blushes.
But England boss Capello said he was furious with Cole and Rooney for being too defensive.
"Did I have a row with them? Yes," the Italian said.
"I was upset that they had both dropped far too deep into the midfield which meant Emile Heskey was then left alone up front.
"I made my feelings plain to them that they needed to get further forward and offer Heskey more support. That’s what I said to them. "
It was another frustrating game for Rooney, who blazed over a glorious chance early on from Theo Walcott's lay-off.
The
Manchester United striker has scored just two competitive goals for his country since Euro 2004.
Rooney played down his touchline row with Capello in the second half.
"The manager wanted to give us some tactical advice because of how tough they were to break down, so he was just telling us a few different things," he said.