Judging by Fabio Capello’s first days as manager, it appears that the devout Roman Catholic is determined to run the England team in the manner of a monastery. A strict sense of discipline was instilled, with players addressed by their surnames and a stony silence at the rigorously observed meal times.

Capello has introduced several changes in only 36 hours with his players, but one thing remains steadfastly the same — the seemingly immutable law that all England managers must present themselves as the polar opposite of their predecessor. Terry Venables’s perceived wheeler-dealing gave way to the self-anointed saint, Glenn Hoddle, who was followed by the refreshingly down-to-earth Kevin Keegan, then the supposed foreign sophisticate, Sven-Göran Eriksson. Steve McClaren’s sole qualification for the job appeared to be his Englishness, but, after cosying up to the players failed to work, he has been replaced by another cold-blooded continental.

Only 18 months ago in a Skopje hotel, John Terry spoke of the freedoms bestowed by the then head coach, with players permitted to lounge around in tracksuits, drink from minibars in their hotel rooms and enjoy entertainment provided by Billy McCulloch, the Chelsea masseur and in-house court jester. McClaren prided himself on treating his players like adults, but it did not work, so it may be as well that Capello regards them as naughty schoolboys.

“It was a bit like going to a new school for the first day,” Rio Ferdinand said. “Everyone is intrigued, excited to see what the new ideas are going to be, if they’re any different to what we’ve been taught before.

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BACKGROUND

• Capello cracks whip and spells out expectations

• Makeover could transform roles

• New diet of formalities and discipline

• Jenas keeps it simple to worry Lampard

BACKGROUND

• Beckham admits call-up would have been 'unfair'

• Taylor's advice to Capello: just win, mate

• New kit cuts dash as players make sharp exit

• Pearce gives charges senior incentive

“I didn’t think it was too lax before, but I’m sure there will be things tweaked and changed. To expect someone to come in and just pick up the reins and do exactly the same as the person before is wrong.

“He’s changed minor things around the hotel and stuff in terms of sitting and eating together. He thinks bonding plays a big part in a successful team. You can see ideas of why that is, everybody having to be down to breakfast and everyone having to leave at the same time. Getting the team together more and spending more time together is one of the things.”

Distance and discipline appear to be Capello’s watchwords, particularly regarding how he addresses the squad, with McClaren’s references to “JT”, “Wazza” and “Stevie G” a thing of the past.

“He’s called me a few names already,” Ferdinand said in an attempt to lighten the mood. “But it’s just ‘Ferdinand’, really. He calls me Ferdinand and a lot of the other players by their surnames.

“Carlos Queiroz called us by surnames when he joined Manchester United and you take it as being part of a different upbringing on the Continent. He hasn’t told us what he wants us to call him, but I’ve called him ‘boss’ a couple of times. He’s not come in and made a big hoo-hah of it. He just wants us to win and wants everybody to be in the same frame of mind.”

While such formalities make a difference, it is the manner in which Capello conducts himself on the training ground and in the dressing-room that matters most, with Steven Gerrard conceding that the players must be tougher mentally and sounder defensively than in the past.

Capello gave little away as he conducted his first training session at Wembley Stadium last night, but it was significant that he remained aloof on the sidelines rather than joining in the horseplay like McClaren did.

“You look at our results in not qualifying for the Euros and there are a lot of things that need changing,” Gerrard said. “We should have won that group comfortably and the mental approach needs to change.

“At the team meeting and training ground, he told us he had watched us individually, and playing for England, in a lot of games. He said we need to be better defensively and going forward. He knows where we need to improve and what needs to be done to win important games.”

Gerrard is expected to be given the honour of leading out Capello’s first England team, against Switzerland tomorrow, but has yet to be told as much. While McClaren was memorably photographed tackling John Terry, his captain, in training on the eve of England’s crucial European Championship qualifying defeat in Russia, Capello has not even confirmed who will be his choice as leader. It is little wonder that the nervous schoolboys are on their best behaviour.

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