Fabio Capello claimed something had been lost in translation yesterday after he was quoted as telling an Italian newspaper that he planned to retire after the 2010 World Cup finals, with two years of his England contract to run, but the manager threw up further confusion by sending out conflicting messages with regard to Frank Lampard and David Beckham.

Capello suggested that his preference would be for Lampard, who is wanted by Inter Milan, to stay at Chelsea “because he would have less travelling to do that way”, yet he said that Beckham, the Los Angeles Galaxy midfield player, will continue to cross eight time zones to meet up with the England squad before each match.

“For as long as he is at a level to play, he will play,” Capello said in an interview with La Repubblica, the Rome-based newspaper.

Beckham's seemingly guaranteed place may have much to do with a lack of alternatives available to the England manager. Since his appointment in December, Capello has been diplomatic over the difficulties he faces, but he expressed frustration at the number of players available to him in a league in which overseas imports form the majority and suggested that he is at a disadvantage going into the World Cup qualifying campaign.

Despite that frustration, Capello remains committed to the task in hand, having sought to clarify a misunderstanding caused by his response when asked whether he would be tempted by the Italy job. The 62-year-old said that his coaching career “will end with my England experience” and, when asked whether he would retire in 2010, he said: “This is certain.” Later he explained that he had misunderstood the question.

An FA spokesman said: “Fabio just wishes to clarify he did not mean he was planning to quit the England job after the World Cup. His full concentration is on qualifying for the 2010 World Cup and he is not thinking past that objective at the moment.”

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