Fabio snaps, but safari so good, claims Cole

FABIO CAPELLO’S smooth exterior finally cracked in Rustenburg yesterday morning, revealing a teak-tough attitude Joe Cole is convinced can help steer England to World Cup glory.

Apparently already piqued by having a safari trek disturbed by the presence of a dozen photographers and camera crews on Wednesday, Capello flipped at England’s Royal Bafokeng training base when he thought the interior of a medical room was being filmed.

“Why do you take photos of the rooms? No excuses,” snapped Capello before glaring angrily at his prey, and heading into the middle of England’s training pitch.

It could be regarded as evidence of pressure after a fraught week that started with a tournament-ending knee injury to skipper Rio Ferdinand and delivered a wretched first-half display in Monday’s practice match with the Platinum Stars, when Wayne Rooney’s conduct was criticised by the local referee.

But that view would be at odds with the one Cole has witnessed behind closed doors. The midfielder might have been injured for the vast majority of Capello’s reign.

However, the experiences the 29-year-old has had confirms a belief that Capello is the equal of any manager Cole has worked with, a list that includes Jose Mourinho.

“Fabio is a great manager,” he said.

“I have been lucky enough to work with some great managers and he is right up there with the best.”

The guessing game has already started about England’s likely starting line-up to face the United States in Saturday’s Group C opener in Rustenburg. But no-one really knows, not even the players.

“The great thing about the squad now, which is different to when I have been in England squads before, is that you don’t know who the manager is going to pick in any position,” said Cole.

“It keeps everyone on their toes.

“When players are not being picked on reputations and the manager is choosing his team solely on form, fitness and temperament, that is when you get the better team ethic and things gel together. There is a lot of competition in this squad. There aren’t 10 lads thinking they are going to be sitting on the bench in this tournament.

“Everyone thinks they have got a chance at this World Cup and that has to help overall.”

Cole says he wasn’t overly concerned by Rooney’s temper tantrum on Monday, which it has been argued within the England camp actually provided the Three Lions with the lift they required.

“Wayne is an experienced player,” said Cole. “Teams have tried to wind him up in the past but he will be okay.”

Meanwhile midfielder Michael Bradley has warned England to expect a physical approach from the United States on Saturday.

Bradley, the son of USA coach Bob Bradley, has pledged to make it “really hard” for Fabio Capello’s side in Rustenburg.

He believes USA will stick to the tried and tested formula which saw them reach the final of the Confederation Cup last summer before losing to Brazil after leading 2-0 at one stage.

The Borussia Monchengladbach player said: “We have a way of playing that has got us this far – and we are going to stick to that. The most important thing is to go out and give everything we have and make it really hard on England. That means closing them down well. If one guy gets beaten, the next guy is always there.

“It means having a physical edge to the way you play, being committed to running and fighting and covering for each other for 90 minutes.

“There are a lot of things that go into it – but having a physical edge is something we bring on our best days and we need that on Saturday.”