His finances are under scrutiny by Italian authorities and this was another probe Fabio Capello must have dreaded: a press investigation into his syntax affairs.

Verdict? Bene - as Capello did not say, since he replied to media questions in English yesterday. At last an end to all those tortured, bland and opaque answers served up in recent press conferences. But enough about life under Steve McClaren.

The manager has been tutored by Peter Clark, whose company provides translators for British clubs at European games, at home over Christmas and for two hours a day at Soho Square when he formally began the job in January.

The Italian even essayed a joke about Arsenal's lack of English players, which went down especially well as he was speaking at the club's training ground. As fluent and clear as could be expected for a relative novice, his grammar wobbled a bit at times, such as when he was asked about John Terry's mindset after the mishap in Moscow. “Forget the last time, he must,” Capello said. Anyway, this made him sound like Yoda from Star Wars, and who wouldn't back a Jedi Master to guide England at least to the semi-finals of the World Cup?

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