Fabio Capello - Fabio Capello Resigns As England Manager - Who Will Replace Him?

Fabio Capello has resigned as manager of the England football team after a crisis meeting with FA chairman David Bernstein and general secretary Alex Horne at Wembley Stadium. In a statement confirming the news, the FA said, "The Football Association can confirm that Fabio Capello has today resigned as England manager".

The statement went on to say that the resignation came after Fabio disagreed with the FA's decision to remove the England captaincy from defender John Terry, following his involvement in alleged racist abuse of fellow professional Anton Ferdinand. It added, "In a meeting for over an hour, Fabio's resignation was accepted and he will leave the post of England manager with immediate effect". Bernstein and the Club England management team will hold a media conference at Wembley at 12 noon tomorrow, though attention now turns to who will replace the Italian and who will lead England to the European Championships this summer. Harry Redknapp had been the overwhelming favourite with the bookmakers to replace Capello after the upcoming championship, though the timing of Fabio's resignation could make it difficult for Harry to leave Tottenham Hotspurs as they push to win their first Premiership title. An option is that Harry would continue is work with the London club until the end of the season and lead England to the Euros, before taking over permanently afterwards.

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew appears to be the second favourite to takeover, while Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho may be tempted to return to England as the bubbling unrest concerning his position in Spain begins to intensify.