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Fabio Capello: I took drugs
By Malcolm Moore in Rome
Last Updated: 1:34am GMT 13/12/2007
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Fabio Capello, the England manager-in-waiting, took dangerous, performance-enhancing drugs during his playing career, it has emerged.
Henry Winter: Capello to be named England manager
In pics: Fabio Capello's career | Fans' forum
Patrick Nathanson: Capello on his way As Capello arrived in London yesterday to discuss his dream job, a whispering campaign in Italy mounted against him, reflecting deep unpopularity in his home country.
Playing days: Fabio Capello took the substance before it was illegalIn an interview in 2004, while he was manager of Juventus, Capello admitted that he had taken Micoren, a respiratory aid that acts as a stimulant, while he was a player.
"We all took it. I took it even when I played for the national team. At the time it was not illegal, it only became banned afterwards," he said to L'Espresso, a magazine.
Capello played from 1964 to 1979, and represented Italy between 1972 and 1976, scoring a winning goal against England at Wembley.
Micoren contains prethcamide, and was later alleged to have dangerous side effects.
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Nello Saltutti, a former Milan, Sampdoria and Fiorentina player, said: "Micoren was taken off the market in 1985, because it was found to be harmful. However, we took it for 20 years without any doctors telling us it was wrong or with any side effects after the match. The anti-doping controls were a joke."
Saltutti's death, at the age of 56 in 2003, is being investigated to see if there was any link to Micoren.
When Capello made the comments, Juventus were mired in a doping scandal of their own, which later saw their club doctor, Riccardo Agricola, sentenced to almost two years in prison after 281 different drugs were found at the club's training ground.
Agricola administered the drugs between 1994 and 1998, well before Capello arrived, but Capello declined to condemn the club. "In my career as a player and a manager, I have seen how things are done, but it doesn't seem right to denounce them now," he said.
He added that he was "not embarrassed in the slightest" by the doping shadow that hung over the club.
Juventus were later stripped of the two league titles they won under Capello because of their involvement in the match-rigging scandal. Again, there was no indication that Capello had any knowledge of what was going on.
Other voices against Capello alluded to his mercenary attitude, and pointed out that he walked out both on AS Roma and on Juventus. When Capello left Roma in 2004, he did not say a word to anyone, not even Franco Baldini, his closest confidant. Even today, when he visits Rome, he admits that he "needs a bodyguard".
However, he has made little secret of his desire to coach England. Baldini said he first grew interested in the England job in 2000, when he saw that the FA were willing to appoint a foreigner, Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Four years ago, Capello himself said: "I am not interested in the Italian national team. I prefer to have a new experience, outside of Italy. Between the national team and abroad, I choose England. For the language, the mentality. I believe I can do it. It is a dream of mine, something I have held for a long time."
Capello was coached by his father, Guerrino, until he turned 18. When he came to sign his first professional contract, Gipo Viani, the manager of AC Milan, visited Capello's father to persuade him to sign for the club. He was turned away. Capello senior had already pledged his son's future to SPAL 1907, a small club in Ferrara who were in Serie A at the time.
Latest news on the next England manager Capello met his wife, Laura, soon after arriving in Ferrara, on the No 5 bus. She was studying law, he was studying to be a surveyor. They married, and Capello chose to move to Roma, turning down Inter Milan. He spent two years in the capital, and won a place in the national team, before moving to Juventus.
At the Turin club he was nicknamed The Little Professor because he spent his free time reading philosophy and watching Fellini movies. He listened to Bach and Ella Fitzgerald and admired the paintings of Giorgio De Chirico.
Have your say
Post this story to: del.icio.us | Digg | Newsvine | NowPublic | Reddit
Related articles
12 December 2007: Fabio Capello has the cure for England
External links
The Football Association
Comments
Agreed. No Englishman, sadly, was even remotely up to the task. I keep reading about the chap who's president of the League Manager's Association (or something) still blethering on about how it should be a Englishman doing the job. He's obviouly not a football fan, or if he is, obviouly not an English one.
Posted by Big Chaz on December 13, 2007 3:23 PM
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Who cares. A very tabloid story.
Posted by Marco Saluzzo on December 13, 2007 3:02 PM
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I must admit to being a little unsure of the appointment myself. Knowing that this is a man who will not hesitate to drop players who either do not perform or are maintained in their position simply because of who they are, irrespective of whether there are other players outperforming them, well, how will he sleep at night? Just think, David Beckham would never have reached 100 caps under this cruel tyrant. (He hasn't yet.99 so far.) My heart goes out to these poor poor footballers!
Posted by derrick gunning on December 13, 2007 2:53 PM
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Maybe boring England will get a bit of Italian class.No more fish and chips with a swish of beer football, but champagne style football.
2010 in South Africa here we come.Now we need a new captain.Rooney is the man for the job.
Posted by brian levin on December 13, 2007 1:27 PM
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"Look at what happened to McClaren and Eriksson when results started going against them. "
When did results start going against Eriksson then? Quarter finalists after stylish qualification for three major tournaments is a record Capello will do well to improve upon.
Posted by Andrew Thompson on December 13, 2007 12:55 PM
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Leave the man alone!! He's done nothing wrong. Journalists always need something to write, can we at least wait until he gets in the chair please? Lets not put the man off us. It's worth noting that the only decent English manager we've had in an age [Hoddle] was hounded out by you guys for non footballing reasons. That still disgusts me as he had us playing technically good football.
Posted by Bryan Culmer on December 13, 2007 12:50 PM
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The FA repeatedly said that they wanted a "world class manager", ......
so why choose Capello?
I guess thats the end of the road for Becks?
Posted by Bill Thomson on December 13, 2007 12:09 PM
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This is a tabloid article. The headline, the article itself, its designed to stir up trouble and I'm disappointed in the telegraph. I expect this sort of thing in the Sun not here!!
Posted by David M on December 13, 2007 11:46 AM
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good luck to him. he has a great CV. let's hope the press stop looking for dirt and let him do his job - our press has a lot to answer for in so many areas.
Posted by Robert S on December 13, 2007 11:11 AM
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What are you on about Woody? There is nothing in this article that should compromise his appointment. If you're referring to the fact that he took a perfectly legal drug, then you're talking rubbish. I take asprin 'cause it improves my performance when I have a headache. If science was to reveal that asprin is bad for you and it was criminilized would you call me a druggy for once taken it? My point is that he has done nothing wrong. HE was a footballer of his time - don't take it out of context.
Posted by Peter Marley on December 13, 2007 10:43 AM
Report this comment
Well job sorted then. The huge salary will obviously secure a semi-final berth in all major competitions
and Capello's international team experience will do the rest. It's just a pity he can't pick Italian, Spanish, Portugese.....etc players and will have to rely on the lump it and chase merchants from the 'golden generation'.
The manager may pick the team but the players have to be good enough to go and win the match and against the better opposition, English players have proved time and again that they are not.
Posted by Tony Ford on December 13, 2007 10:34 AM
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Brilliant english media, shooting day the guy before he has even had one day in the job. Sven was hounded out by you guys, could we please let a manager do his job?
Posted by Nik on December 13, 2007 10:22 AM
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This is not news, it is a joke. Wait until he messes up before you start trying to make him look bad. (The Link read "Fabio Cappello: I took drugs). How does that look to someone who hasnt read the full article? Sad.
Posted by James Barker on December 13, 2007 10:05 AM
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What I want to know is who from our crop of "superstars" will feel the hot breath of Capello first?
Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole perhaps; then there are the goal keepers...........
Posted by puskas on December 13, 2007 10:01 AM
Report this comment
I don't care a lot for football, but I know a lot
about professional cycling. The comments so far
are sadly reminiscent of the early drug scandals
in that sport. A total reluctance to confront a
potentially catastrophic problem from the fans
right up to the very top.
Journalists who continue to bring this matter to
public attention should be congratulated
because they stand out from a generally fawning
profession of media sports commentators who
believe it is in their interests to keep quiet and
deny there may in fact be a developing problem
here.
Posted by Joe Walker on December 13, 2007 9:47 AM
Report this comment
What is most worrying about Capello's appointment is his lack of experience on the international scene. The FA repeatedly said that they wanted a "world class manager", but it appears that Capello does not have the credentials to fall into this bracket. Look at what happened to McClaren and Eriksson when results started going against them. For me, Lippi is and always has been the man for the job.......
Posted by alumno on December 13, 2007 8:40 AM
Report this comment
Why are these issues only coming to light now
that he has been offered the job? Why was this
not part of the Press's "due diligence" when he
was simply one of 5 candidates? There are things
in this article that clearly have relevance to
whether or not Capello is a suitable candidate,
yet it is only made public when it is too late.
Posted by Woody on December 13, 2007 7:24 AM
Report this comment
Why is your paper bringing this up? The man hasn't even signed his contract and already the media are trying to dig up dirt. It's a non-story anyway and only reflects badly on The Telegraph. Shame on you lads.
Posted by Peter Marley on December 13, 2007 6:10 AM
Report this comment
the England team needs some one to come in and shake things up a bit. I believe Capello can do the job if they decide to hire him. Players were getting complacent for far too long.
Posted by Acat on December 13, 2007 4:27 AM
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I suppose the DT doesn't want him to be the next manager? If it wasn't illegal, then there's no story is there? And that's even if it's true!
Posted by mike c on December 13, 2007 3:41 AM
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Not to nit pick but the two titles Juventus lost relate to the Marcello Lippi era, not that of Capello. Capello was at Roma at the time in question.
Posted by Andrew on December 13, 2007 2:53 AM
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Who cares? as long as he wins us the Euro Cup and the World Cup.. His job is done and should be knighted for it. No English manager is in the same league as Capello, Scolari, Lippi, Fergie, Benitez, Wenger, Mourinho... It had to be a foreign, and the mourners should stop discriminating...
Posted by S SIngh on December 13, 2007 1:28 AM
Report this comment
By Malcolm Moore in Rome
Last Updated: 1:34am GMT 13/12/2007
Have your say Read commentsFabio Capello, the England manager-in-waiting, took dangerous, performance-enhancing drugs during his playing career, it has emerged.
Henry Winter: Capello to be named England manager
In pics: Fabio Capello's career | Fans' forum
Patrick Nathanson: Capello on his way As Capello arrived in London yesterday to discuss his dream job, a whispering campaign in Italy mounted against him, reflecting deep unpopularity in his home country.
Playing days: Fabio Capello took the substance before it was illegalIn an interview in 2004, while he was manager of Juventus, Capello admitted that he had taken Micoren, a respiratory aid that acts as a stimulant, while he was a player."We all took it. I took it even when I played for the national team. At the time it was not illegal, it only became banned afterwards," he said to L'Espresso, a magazine.
Capello played from 1964 to 1979, and represented Italy between 1972 and 1976, scoring a winning goal against England at Wembley.
Micoren contains prethcamide, and was later alleged to have dangerous side effects.
advertisement
Nello Saltutti, a former Milan, Sampdoria and Fiorentina player, said: "Micoren was taken off the market in 1985, because it was found to be harmful. However, we took it for 20 years without any doctors telling us it was wrong or with any side effects after the match. The anti-doping controls were a joke."
Saltutti's death, at the age of 56 in 2003, is being investigated to see if there was any link to Micoren.
When Capello made the comments, Juventus were mired in a doping scandal of their own, which later saw their club doctor, Riccardo Agricola, sentenced to almost two years in prison after 281 different drugs were found at the club's training ground.
Agricola administered the drugs between 1994 and 1998, well before Capello arrived, but Capello declined to condemn the club. "In my career as a player and a manager, I have seen how things are done, but it doesn't seem right to denounce them now," he said.
He added that he was "not embarrassed in the slightest" by the doping shadow that hung over the club.
Juventus were later stripped of the two league titles they won under Capello because of their involvement in the match-rigging scandal. Again, there was no indication that Capello had any knowledge of what was going on.
Other voices against Capello alluded to his mercenary attitude, and pointed out that he walked out both on AS Roma and on Juventus. When Capello left Roma in 2004, he did not say a word to anyone, not even Franco Baldini, his closest confidant. Even today, when he visits Rome, he admits that he "needs a bodyguard".
However, he has made little secret of his desire to coach England. Baldini said he first grew interested in the England job in 2000, when he saw that the FA were willing to appoint a foreigner, Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Four years ago, Capello himself said: "I am not interested in the Italian national team. I prefer to have a new experience, outside of Italy. Between the national team and abroad, I choose England. For the language, the mentality. I believe I can do it. It is a dream of mine, something I have held for a long time."
Capello was coached by his father, Guerrino, until he turned 18. When he came to sign his first professional contract, Gipo Viani, the manager of AC Milan, visited Capello's father to persuade him to sign for the club. He was turned away. Capello senior had already pledged his son's future to SPAL 1907, a small club in Ferrara who were in Serie A at the time.
Latest news on the next England manager Capello met his wife, Laura, soon after arriving in Ferrara, on the No 5 bus. She was studying law, he was studying to be a surveyor. They married, and Capello chose to move to Roma, turning down Inter Milan. He spent two years in the capital, and won a place in the national team, before moving to Juventus.
At the Turin club he was nicknamed The Little Professor because he spent his free time reading philosophy and watching Fellini movies. He listened to Bach and Ella Fitzgerald and admired the paintings of Giorgio De Chirico.
Have your say Post this story to: del.icio.us | Digg | Newsvine | NowPublic | Reddit
Related articles
12 December 2007: Fabio Capello has the cure for England
External links
The Football Association
Comments
Agreed. No Englishman, sadly, was even remotely up to the task. I keep reading about the chap who's president of the League Manager's Association (or something) still blethering on about how it should be a Englishman doing the job. He's obviouly not a football fan, or if he is, obviouly not an English one.
Posted by Big Chaz on December 13, 2007 3:23 PM
Report this comment
Who cares. A very tabloid story.
Posted by Marco Saluzzo on December 13, 2007 3:02 PM
Report this comment
I must admit to being a little unsure of the appointment myself. Knowing that this is a man who will not hesitate to drop players who either do not perform or are maintained in their position simply because of who they are, irrespective of whether there are other players outperforming them, well, how will he sleep at night? Just think, David Beckham would never have reached 100 caps under this cruel tyrant. (He hasn't yet.99 so far.) My heart goes out to these poor poor footballers!
Posted by derrick gunning on December 13, 2007 2:53 PM
Report this comment
Maybe boring England will get a bit of Italian class.No more fish and chips with a swish of beer football, but champagne style football.
2010 in South Africa here we come.Now we need a new captain.Rooney is the man for the job.
Posted by brian levin on December 13, 2007 1:27 PM
Report this comment
"Look at what happened to McClaren and Eriksson when results started going against them. "
When did results start going against Eriksson then? Quarter finalists after stylish qualification for three major tournaments is a record Capello will do well to improve upon.
Posted by Andrew Thompson on December 13, 2007 12:55 PM
Report this comment
Leave the man alone!! He's done nothing wrong. Journalists always need something to write, can we at least wait until he gets in the chair please? Lets not put the man off us. It's worth noting that the only decent English manager we've had in an age [Hoddle] was hounded out by you guys for non footballing reasons. That still disgusts me as he had us playing technically good football.
Posted by Bryan Culmer on December 13, 2007 12:50 PM
Report this comment
The FA repeatedly said that they wanted a "world class manager", ......
so why choose Capello?
I guess thats the end of the road for Becks?
Posted by Bill Thomson on December 13, 2007 12:09 PM
Report this comment
This is a tabloid article. The headline, the article itself, its designed to stir up trouble and I'm disappointed in the telegraph. I expect this sort of thing in the Sun not here!!
Posted by David M on December 13, 2007 11:46 AM
Report this comment
good luck to him. he has a great CV. let's hope the press stop looking for dirt and let him do his job - our press has a lot to answer for in so many areas.
Posted by Robert S on December 13, 2007 11:11 AM
Report this comment
What are you on about Woody? There is nothing in this article that should compromise his appointment. If you're referring to the fact that he took a perfectly legal drug, then you're talking rubbish. I take asprin 'cause it improves my performance when I have a headache. If science was to reveal that asprin is bad for you and it was criminilized would you call me a druggy for once taken it? My point is that he has done nothing wrong. HE was a footballer of his time - don't take it out of context.
Posted by Peter Marley on December 13, 2007 10:43 AM
Report this comment
Well job sorted then. The huge salary will obviously secure a semi-final berth in all major competitions
and Capello's international team experience will do the rest. It's just a pity he can't pick Italian, Spanish, Portugese.....etc players and will have to rely on the lump it and chase merchants from the 'golden generation'.
The manager may pick the team but the players have to be good enough to go and win the match and against the better opposition, English players have proved time and again that they are not.
Posted by Tony Ford on December 13, 2007 10:34 AM
Report this comment
Brilliant english media, shooting day the guy before he has even had one day in the job. Sven was hounded out by you guys, could we please let a manager do his job?
Posted by Nik on December 13, 2007 10:22 AM
Report this comment
This is not news, it is a joke. Wait until he messes up before you start trying to make him look bad. (The Link read "Fabio Cappello: I took drugs). How does that look to someone who hasnt read the full article? Sad.
Posted by James Barker on December 13, 2007 10:05 AM
Report this comment
What I want to know is who from our crop of "superstars" will feel the hot breath of Capello first?
Rio Ferdinand, Ashley Cole perhaps; then there are the goal keepers...........
Posted by puskas on December 13, 2007 10:01 AM
Report this comment
I don't care a lot for football, but I know a lot
about professional cycling. The comments so far
are sadly reminiscent of the early drug scandals
in that sport. A total reluctance to confront a
potentially catastrophic problem from the fans
right up to the very top.
Journalists who continue to bring this matter to
public attention should be congratulated
because they stand out from a generally fawning
profession of media sports commentators who
believe it is in their interests to keep quiet and
deny there may in fact be a developing problem
here.
Posted by Joe Walker on December 13, 2007 9:47 AM
Report this comment
What is most worrying about Capello's appointment is his lack of experience on the international scene. The FA repeatedly said that they wanted a "world class manager", but it appears that Capello does not have the credentials to fall into this bracket. Look at what happened to McClaren and Eriksson when results started going against them. For me, Lippi is and always has been the man for the job.......
Posted by alumno on December 13, 2007 8:40 AM
Report this comment
Why are these issues only coming to light now
that he has been offered the job? Why was this
not part of the Press's "due diligence" when he
was simply one of 5 candidates? There are things
in this article that clearly have relevance to
whether or not Capello is a suitable candidate,
yet it is only made public when it is too late.
Posted by Woody on December 13, 2007 7:24 AM
Report this comment
Why is your paper bringing this up? The man hasn't even signed his contract and already the media are trying to dig up dirt. It's a non-story anyway and only reflects badly on The Telegraph. Shame on you lads.
Posted by Peter Marley on December 13, 2007 6:10 AM
Report this comment
the England team needs some one to come in and shake things up a bit. I believe Capello can do the job if they decide to hire him. Players were getting complacent for far too long.
Posted by Acat on December 13, 2007 4:27 AM
Report this comment
I suppose the DT doesn't want him to be the next manager? If it wasn't illegal, then there's no story is there? And that's even if it's true!
Posted by mike c on December 13, 2007 3:41 AM
Report this comment
Not to nit pick but the two titles Juventus lost relate to the Marcello Lippi era, not that of Capello. Capello was at Roma at the time in question.
Posted by Andrew on December 13, 2007 2:53 AM
Report this comment
Who cares? as long as he wins us the Euro Cup and the World Cup.. His job is done and should be knighted for it. No English manager is in the same league as Capello, Scolari, Lippi, Fergie, Benitez, Wenger, Mourinho... It had to be a foreign, and the mourners should stop discriminating...
Posted by S SIngh on December 13, 2007 1:28 AM
Report this comment
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