Does that mean that he's no longer the womanising cheat who divided the national squad's loyalties and forced one team-mate in to an early international retirement? No, he is still as reprehensible as ever.
Does it mean that Capello has learnt his lesson and changed his own mind? Maybe. Or maybe it is just the latest example of casual mismanagement in the England manager's rein, which is ever more so resembling precisely what the cynics say it is: a cushy little pre-retirement pay-day.
The Italian has certainly botched his handling of this matter, whichever way you look at it. He either should have stood by Terry and not sacked him in the first place, or he should have stayed true to his original decision. Having done neither, he should have extended Rio Ferdinand the courtesy of not debating the subject in the media before discussing it with him. Some matters should certainly be kept behind closed doors.
The revelation, skirted over, at least in the BBC coverage of story, that Ferdinand refused an invitation to meet with the gaffer on Wednesday night shows that the now former England skipper felt slighted and undermined by the highly public discussion over the previous few days. That it coincided with media reports over the sustainability of the injury-plagued centre-half's career as even a Manchester United player can't have helped.
So Ferdinand is put out. Steven Gerrard is probably a bit put out. John Terry was put out for a year but now he can be smug again. The overall harmony of the England camp, it seems, is a bit all over the place. It is almost as if Capello does not understand the nature of managing Englishmen in the full glare of the English public. But then, not being English and having never played or managed here, how could he? His Italian compatriots, you imagine, would not have made such a fuss of what was an entirely non-football manner.
In desperation the FA reached out for Capello, who was as proven as any manager in the game. Well, he was at club level. In international management, he was no more experienced than Allardyce or Redknapp. But, truth be told, no-one going in to the England job can really be qualified by experience. The job is unique: a narrow pool of talent; a domestic league over-ridden with foreign talent; no players with experience of any league other than our blood and thunder Premier League. Too many players of the same quintessentially English mould; too few of any other.
And now the FA have stated, presumably for some of the reasons above, and also just because people think it's the right thing to do, that the next boss should be English. Like Capello's hard and soft handling of John Terry, it seems that the FA is hot-stepping between moral footings. If it was not the right thing to do before, then why is it now?
Regardless, Capello is retiring from the post next year. Who will replace him?
If only a perfect candidate were to arise. Someone with all the relevant experience: success at home, abroad and in Europe. Intimate knowledge of the England set-up and the pressures associated with it.
Steve McClaren anyone?
The FA did not-so-long ago state that they would consider re-appointing McClaren, who at the time was gaining wide repute for his title-winning success at Dutch side FC Twente. He would never be accepted back though, would he? In this age of trial-by-media he would have the noose around his neck before he even had chance to unfurl his brolly.
So who then? There is no perfect candidate, and the best coaches and the best tacticians, even the much-trumpeted Fabio Capello, have failed. So who?
A patriot. A pragmatist. A man who demands respect not for his world renown or for his past successes, but for his passion. Someone who would have either told Terry to shove it or who would have backed him unequivocally. Someone who may not be the best and brightest, but who is honest and true. Someone young, English and driven, who could feasibly lead the team for a generation. Someone we, players and fans alike, can all get behind without any debate or doubt.
My man may also be the FA's man. After all, he is already on the inside. He is Stuart Pearce. Psycho. Could he be the next England manager?
