Ex-England Boss Delivers Harsh World Cup Reality Check to Thomas Tuchel, Highlights Arsenal Superstar

FABIO CAPELLO cut a frustrated figure as England boss. Now, as a keen observer, he finds the team just as exasperating.

The hard-nosed disciplinarian witnessed first-hand the mental strait-jacket that suffocated his team 16 years ago in South Africa as they were thrashed 4-1 by in the last 16.

Fabio Capello is an ambassador for the Laureus FoundationCredit: EPA The Italian oversaw a dismal World Cup with England in 2010 in South AfricaCredit: AFP

Capello saw it happen again as a spectator during the Euro 2020 final at , when ‘s side lost on penalties to .

That followed a 1-1 draw after scored the opener on two minutes.

Italian Capello, 79, is one of only NINE men to have managed the Three Lions in the pressure cooker of a football World Cup.

Today, he tells ‘s men they must play with freedom to have any chance of lifting the trophy.

Speaking to SunSport in his role as a Laureus Ambassador, Capello said: “You have the best players, the best moments, but when you arrive at the final, they play with fear.

“Another important thing is they arrive tired, physically.

“I remember the final in against Italy. They beat England on penalties.

“After England scored the goal, they stopped playing. The keeper started to play long ball.

“The players started to lose time. Slowly, they went to shoot at the corner.

“Walking, not running. I don’t understand why this happened. It is just a big psychological barrier.”

Capello’s 2010 World Cup campaign was one to forget as England drew with the United States (1-1) and Algeria (0-0) and only squeezed past Slovenia 1-0 to qualify from the group. Then they lost to the Germans at the first knockout stage.

It is a stain on an otherwise stellar CV, with Capello winning five Serie A titles and the 1994 with before going on to lift two LaLiga crowns with Real Madrid.

He always felt that he was handicapped by putting together a group of players who had tired legs come June and July.

Capello, a long-standing supporter of the Laureus Sport for Good foundation, added: “At this moment, the best football you can see on TV you can see in the Premier League.

“In my opinion, England players arrive tired at the end of the season, because the season is really, really strong.

“I said always (as England boss) in September, October, we can play against the best teams in the world without problems.

“In March, April, we are a little bit tired. In June, we are tired.

“We are not the same team that you can manage during the season. For this, we have to wait for the condition of the players, when they arrive physically.

“The team is good. The quality is good. The balance – the defenders, midfielders and forwards – there are a lot of options to choose.

“But every time when they arrive here, sometimes they have fear. They lose the final with fear.

Thomas Tuchel will pick his England World Cup squad at the end of the Premier League seasonCredit: Getty Capello reckons Declan Rice is the player who could drive the England midfield this summerCredit: Alamy

“I don’t understand why. Because the pressure from the media, from the fans, from everyone – ‘Come on, come on, come on, come on’.

“During the final games that they played, the two finals, they played not free. This is the problem. You have to play free. If the players play free, they are absolutely one of the best teams in the world. Absolutely. They can beat everyone.”

Capello is a big admirer of England chief Tuchel, 52, a fellow Champions League-winning manager from his days in charge of Chelsea.

And he told the German: “It is an honour to manage England, because in this moment you manage some of the best footballers in the world.”

The three players he has singled out as key for Tuchel are Real Madrid‘s , Bayern Munich striker and Arsenal‘s (right), who would be pivotal in central midfield.

If these trio are fit and firing then England are among the favourites when the largest World Cup takes place between June 11 and July 19, across the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Capello said: “When I arrived in South Africa, when I managed England, it was incredible. The personality, the spirit of the team changed.

“They played with fear. Not at the same fantastic moment that we played for the qualification.

“It was another team, other players. The most important thing for me is you have to find some leader on the team.

“They have to drive the other ones on the pitch. As an example, to speak, to motivate the other ones. ‘Come on! Go!’.

“This is important if you find one of these on the pitch. Because sometimes not the best players are leaders on the pitch. Because some players play alone.

“The leader is the player that during the game drives the team. ‘Come on guys, be careful’.

“This is more and more and more important to find.

“I think at this moment, the player of Arsenal, Declan Rice, is one of the players that can help everyone.”

Fabio Capello was speaking during the announcement of the shortlist nominees for the 2026 Laureus World Sports Awards, which take place on April 20 in Madrid. Follow @laureussport for updates or visit www.laureus.com .