Manchester United defender Gary Neville has pointed the finger of blame at the players for England's woeful underperformance at the World Cup.
The veteran right-back also thinks that the FA should be held to account for the manner in which they have handled the whole situation, and is outraged by the way in which they seem to have pandered to public opinion.
"England are out of the World Cup and, surprise, surprise, we are talking about sacking the manager," Neville told The Times.
"If that was a reaction I expected from some fans and pundits, I was disappointed - although not exactly shocked - to hear wavering coming out of the FA.
"Two weeks to decide Fabio Capello's future, says Adrian Bevington, the Club England managing director.
"This is the same Club England (whatever that is) that trumpeted so proudly 28 days ago that it had taken the release clause out of the manager's contract.
"One minute these guys are talking about Capello as world-class, now they need a fortnight to decide if he is the man for them after all.
"What are they waiting for - to see what's in the newspapers? Where is the backbone? Now you can understand why I have had my arguments with the FA down the years."
Blaming the manager for the team's failings is also a convenient whitewash for the dismal performances of some big name players for the Three Lions.
"It (the FA) has to stick by Capello. I do not agree with all his decisions, from squad selection to formation, but nor do I buy the idea that he merits the sack," Neville added.
"It is easy for Alan Shearer to say the players haven't performed for him, but is that all one man's fault? I'd put three of Germany's four goals down to individuals.
"Whatever anyone says about systems - and I was surprised Capello didn't try 4-5-1 - these were errors from experienced players."
Neville also pinpoints a lack of top class English players in the Premier League as a problem, and asserts that the strong Champions League performance of English teams in recent seasons has created a falsely high assesment of how good domestic players actually are.
"We have to question how good we truly are," he stated.
"Better than we performed in this World Cup, for sure, but have we overestimated our strengths on the basis of our strong record in the Champions League? Possibly.
"The success of Manchester United and Chelsea cannot be a reliable guide to the merits of the England team, given the number of top-class players from overseas."
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