Blatter questions need for Capello

LONDON, England -- FIFA president Sepp Blatter has criticized the English FA for appointing another foreign coach to run the national team -- on the day Italian Fabio Capello officially took charge.

Blatter said that the FA had "broken a principle of international football" by not choosing an Englishman to succeed Steve McClaren who was sacked after failing to reach the Euro 2008 finals.

He told BBC Sport: "I have never seen Italy, Germany, Brazil or Argentina with a coach from another country. In fact, most of the best teams have a coach from their own country.

"I would say it is a little surprising that the motherland of football has ignored a sacrosanct law or belief that the national team manager should be from the same country as the players."

Blatter added that the domestic football authorities need to address the issue of overseas players in the game.

He added: "When you talk about being a football nation and you look at the big clubs in the Premier League it is not the English or British game that is represented. The clubs are international XIs.

"There is no doubt that the Premier League is a global success story in terms of marketing and money.

"But one has to question whether this success has been for the benefit of the game, and not just in England but elsewhere, because the example of football's motherland is important.

"People want the best for their clubs and the Premier League clubs can afford it. But this does not serve football. To serve football you must never forget the national team."

Birmingham City chairman David Gold has also hit out at the FA for putting faith in another foreign coach in Capello.

Gold wants FIFA to make it "a legal requirement" for all footballing nations in the top 64 in the world to have to appoint a home-grown coach.

He understands the FA's predicament in needing to bring in who they think is most ideally suited for the role, and told PA Sport: "I will say now that Capello has been appointed, and is officially taking up his job from this week, that I will be 100 percent supportive of him."

He added: "Capello is a brilliant manager and if it wasn't the national side, I'd say 'great', but this is our national side.

"There are lots and lots of national sides that would never dream of having an overseas manager.

"I am sad but equally realise the driving force behind the decision and probably, if I was Brian Barwick, regrettably I would probably do the same thing.

"How would I protect myself just in case I ever became the chief executive of the FA? I tell you how. I think FIFA and UEFA should apply the same rules to the managers as they do to the players.

"By that I mean you must be English to manage England, Spanish to manage Spain etc. It should be a legal requirement.

"Times are changing and the manager of the national side is more high profile than the players so when I get up in the morning I'm going to see an Italian on TV hardly speaking a word of English telling me how we are going to win the World Cup.

"I tell you if an Italian wins us the World Cup for England I am really going to be very excited by that! Even if England won it, it will take some of the gloss off it for me." E-mail to a friend