Hargreaves eyes England future

And midfielder backs Becks for captaincy

By Peter Fraser   Last updated: 18th January 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Hargreaves eyes England future

Hargreaves: The future is bright

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Owen Hargreaves is hopeful Fabio Capello will turn around the fortunes of the England team and expects the new manager to make changes.

Capello will take charge of his first game since being named successor to Steve McClaren when England take on Switzerland at Wembley on 6th February.

And midfielder Hargreaves is confident Capello - who has enjoyed successful stints as manager of Milan, Roma, Juventus and Real Madrid - will transfer his impressive club record to international level as England bid to forget their failure to qualify for Euro 2008.

"Coming off a disappointing campaign for the European Championship it is going to be a long few months leading up to the tournament itself," Hargreaves told Sky Sports News.

Success

"I hope we have a bright future to look forward to and, with a new manager in, I'm sure changes will be made.

"You look at the success that he (Capello) has had and it is no coincidence. He has been very successful and he has a clear structure and strategy of how he wants to play.

"For us as players we haven't had the opportunity to work with him or see him up close.

"It will be very exciting to get involved and get in the group and train together and see how we will end up playing."

Big picture

Capello has admitted he has yet to decide who he will name as captain of the national side, but Hargreaves has given his backing to David Beckham - who will make his 100th appearance for England if selected against Switzerland.

But Hargreaves insists the success of the England team must come first and that the selection of a skipper must benefit the side as a whole.

"What is important is that we are successful and that we win games. Whoever is the captain, I think the bigger picture is the success of the England team," Hargreaves added.

"I think Becks would also agree with that. It is quite an achievement for him to have 100 caps and I'm sure he will get them.

"He has been a very influential player for us and if he was captain for the day, or hopefully for the next few years, it would be a great thing."

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