Tournament News
England hopefuls to meet fate
2010-03-07 17:26
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London - Fabio Capello will tell his England stars their World Cup fate in a group meeting to unveil his 23-man squad for the finals in South Africa.
England coach Capello will take a preliminary group of 30 players for a week of training in Austria leading up to a friendly against Japan on May 30 and the Italian will then gather his players to let them know if they have earned a place in the final squad.
The England squads for the last two World Cups were announced publicly by Sven-Goran Eriksson, with the players finding out whether or not they were included through the media.
But Capello is keen to let his players know their fate himself and he told The Mail On Sunday: "The last week we are training in Austria. Before the last game we play with Japan we have to decide.
"There will be a meeting with all the players. I will speak with them together and say, 'Thank you very much but I have to choose'.
"It's not the best moment for me. I would like all the players to be with me. They are very good players.
"I hope to take 30 players to Austria but these are difficult moments, with the FA Cup final and the Champions League final at the same time.
"At the moment I have 30 players in my mind, the last one was the centre-back Ryan Shawcross, as you know. These are the players from which I will choose the 23.
"It will be during one meeting and after that we will speak to the media. I think it will be important for all the players to know my decision at once."