Capello seeks maturity from Rooney

26 March 2009 07:45
Fabio Capello is hoping Wayne Rooney's red card at Fulham last weekend will lead to a greater sense of discipline from the England striker.Capello dubbed Rooney "a crazy man" in training on Tuesday, questioning why the Manchester United forward felt it necessary to punch the corner flag following his dismissal at Craven Cottage.As the England coach expressed his view in front of the entire squad, it was not so much a public dressing down as a way of getting rid of any lingering tension before the real business of preparing for Saturday's friendly with Slovakia.However, having seen Rooney's temper explosions on a number of occasions since succeeding Steve McClaren last year, Capello will hope his subtle reference prompts an acknowledgement that such events need to be curbed.Rooney has escaped further sanction for his reaction at the weekend, although he must sit out United's Premier League encounter with Aston Villa on April 5 after receiving a second yellow card from referee Phil Dowd when he hurled the ball back in what was classed as an aggressive manner after Ryan Giggs had tried to take a quick free-kick from the wrong place.Although Capello has yet to reveal how he plans to use Rooney at the weekend, or in the key World Cup qualifier against the Ukraine at Wembley on April 1, he clearly views the 23-year-old as a vital member of his squad and will not want to risk losing him to suspension, either later in the qualifying campaign or in South Africa if, as expected, England reach the World Cup finals next year.Capello is also thought to have had a private chat with Ashley Cole about the late-night altercation that saw him arrested a fortnight ago, although the England coach is happy at how the Chelsea defender quickly apologised to police for his actions.[LNB]

Source: Eurosport