FA admit to errors over Capello deal
ENGLAND chiefs have admitted they should not have controversially removed an exit clause from manager Fabio Capello’s contract on the eve of last year’s World Cup without consulting the whole Football Association board.
Senior figures at the FA hurriedly amended Capello’s deal amid fears he could walk away straight after the tournament, only for England to suffer a hugely disappointing second-round elimination to Germany.
FA general secretary Alex Horne said: “In hindsight, it was a whole board decision and should have gone to the whole board. It did not go to the whole board.”
Horne appeared to blame former FA chairman Lord Triesman, who resigned for other reasons before Capello signed the amended deal.
Horne added: “David [Lord Triesman] was the senior member involved as chairman of the association and clearly felt he had the authority to make that commitment. It was only after he left that the board questioned the decision.”
But Triesman hit back last night: “It is wrong to say I made changes to Capello’s contract without the board’s approval. Changes to his contract were negotiated after I had left the FA and I know only what everyone read in the newspapers.”