Fabio Capello admits that regional accents get lost in translation

[TanyaT]

Fabio Capello admits that regional accents get lost in translation
Oliver Kay The Times
February 22, 2008


Slowly but surely, Fabio Capello is beginning to unravel the mysteries of life in England. Last week it was his observations on the “extraordinarily beautiful” culture of our football; this week his discoveries are that property in London is expensive and, oh yes, that people outside of the capital talk with impenetrable accents.

In an interview with Italian journalists yesterday, Capello gave the very frank admission that he was paying £2,100 a week in rent for his new two-bedroom apartment in Central London, which in itself is less than half the figure of £4,500 that has been reported elsewhere.

Gradually, he is beginning to feel at home, making great progress in learning the English language, although he does confess to having problems understanding some of the regional accents on his “tour” of the Barclays Premier League grounds, which has included stops in Birming-ham, Manchester, Merseyside and the North East.

“It is fundamental to speak the language, particularly before kick-off and during half-time, for tactical plans and psychological support,” Capello said. “The latter can be more important at times than the former. But I’m happy with my language progress.

The only difficulty, when I tour Premier League matches, is that different people in different accents talk to me and in some instances I can hardly understand a word.”

There are plenty of different accents for Capello to try to decipher, not only in the England dressing-room – from the Scouse of Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney to Owen Hargreaves’s unique blend of Canadian with a touch of Bavarian – but also in the FA’s offices at Soho Square.

Brian Barwick, the chief executive, is another Liverpudlian, while the director of communications, Adrian Bevington, who works closely with Capello, hails from the North East.

Since arriving in London in early January, Capello has been delighted by the reaction he has had not only from his players – in their brief time together for a friendly match against Switzerland at Wembley earlier this month, which they won 2-1 – but also from the public.

“They seem very close to my situation,” he said. “They always greet me with great warmth. All of them wish me luck and repeat to me that I have a ‘tough job’ ahead.

“I have found the players well disposed and eager. I had seen most of them in action before, but watching them on TV doesn’t allow you to appraise them off the ball. You can only verify their tactical level from the pitch. But in England there are club sides of very high tactical levels.”

Much has been made of the rules that Capello has imposed at the team hotel – no golf, no mobile phones at meal times, no skipping breakfast – but he believes that his ideas are obvious.

“I just carried over my working method, with a few adjustments to the local habits,” he said. “The purpose is to bring the players to what I expect of them. You need rules, but also an eye to the local culture. You can’t have dinner at 7.45pm in Spain when everybody dines at 9pm.”

Capello will be at Wembley on Sunday to watch the Carling Cup final between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, a match that will allow him to watch John Terry, Frank Lampard and Ledley King – selection permitting – in live action for the first time since taking the job.

All three will expect to be named in his squad for England’s next game, the friendly international away to France on March 26.


http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/spo...cle3412751.ece