Ancelotti will be tested by culture shock

As England head for Almaty for their next World Cup qualifying match, two sobering images linger. One is of Andrés Iniesta darting through a midfield featuring Michael Carrick to make the first goal in the Champions League final. The other is of Rio Ferdinand’s passive role in the second: Xavi Hernández measures for Lionel Messi a cross of such subtlety that Ferdinand, who could have beaten Messi without jumping, finds himself running away from the ball, rather like David Seaman as Ronaldinho’s swirler tricked him in the 2002 World Cup.

How could England hope to match such craft in South Africa next year, when Spain will be fancied to emulate France’s 2000 achievement by holding the world and European titles simultaneously? You only have to think back to England’s 2-0 defeat in Seville in February to realise that there is a gap. Yet any idea that Spain has a monopoly of technique was ridiculed on Saturday at Wembley.

When Frank Lampard used his notionally weaker left foot to fade a drive away from Tim Howard, the Everton goalkeeper, the spirit soared. It was a trick employed by Andrey Arshavin for the second of his four goals in Arsenal’s 4-4 draw with Liverpool and it briefly raised the tone of a mundane final on a pitch that, despite optimism engendered by the play-off finals, was up to some of its old tricks.

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Although Ashley Cole’s selection as man of the match induced puzzlement - Lampard, with his energy and vision, stood above even the renascent Florent Malouda - Cole did perform impressively enough to indicate that England’s left back is fully restored. That is good news for Fabio Capello, for Cole at his best is very nearly a top-class player. He just needs to be able to develop a bit of trust in his right foot, the frailty of which has been responsible for the blunders that have caused even England fans to jeer him.

When you have players working a flank jointly, as Malouda did with Éric Abidal in a reputation-forging era at Lyons (and as Cole did with Robert Pires at Arsenal), it is difficult for opponents. Capello will doubtless work on that in his preparations for Kazakhstan on Saturday and the home match against Andorra the following Wednesday, and if the England manager can be as successful in finding ways for Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney to interact off the front, another piece of the jigsaw will be in place.

The more we see of England, the more we realise that the players’ effusive tributes to Capello were, for once, appropriate (just about every England manager is hailed as a genius until the players underachieve and it starts to be whispered that he is a fool). Gerrard, accepting his Footballer of the Year award, underlined that the Italian’s effect has been radical. A year from the World Cup finals, everything is as it should be - and, thanks to Xavi and Iniesta, any temptation to overconfidence is resistible.

History lesson can help United in hunt for Ferguson's successor

The suggestion that Sir Alex Ferguson become a sort of general manager or director of football at Manchester United while grooming his successor is not a new one. Much as I’d like to claim credit for it, the idea came from Ferguson himself.

During an interview just before Christmas 2000, I got the impression that he favoured the concept of working alongside a younger man such as Steve McClaren, his assistant at the time. “It will be the club’s decision,” Ferguson said (he was due to stand down in 18 months), “but I don’t think it would be easy for one man to come in and do the job the way I’ve been doing it.”

Then the next manager could benefit from wise words, just as he had done when Sir Matt Busby was around during his early struggles to transform the club’s fortunes.

“I was desperate to talk to Matt,” Ferguson said. “One of the things people don’t understand about managers is that sometimes you’re alone and you don’t want to be alone. People assume you’re too busy.” And what could be lonelier than succeeding Ferguson?

We can, of course, only speculate, because Ferguson was to change his mind about retiring, not once but twice, and discover the secret of perpetual rejuvenation. But one day United will need a manager and they should heed his advice.