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England’s second
accomplished victory within a week may not have erased the bitter
memory of a woeful World Cup campaign but the dark clouds hanging over
coach Fabio Capello’s head are showing signs of dissipating.

Injuries and
retirements may have forced the Italian’s hand but England’s
performances in the 4-0 home win against Bulgaria and Tuesday’s 3-1 win
against Switzerland in Basel have been a breath of fresh air and even
Capello appears to be having fun.

Whether by design or by accident, England suddenly look like a team capable of shaking off years of under-achievement.

When substitute
Darren Bent rammed in England’s third goal to put Capello’s side top of
Euro 2012 qualifying Group G, his grizzled face broke into a broad
smile and he cheekily poked out his tongue at goalkeeping coach Ray
Clemence.

It was a moment of
spontaneity that matched much of the play of his team, which while
still set up in traditional 4-4-2 formation, suddenly looks to have
shed the straight-jacket that suffocated their soccer in South Africa.

Emile Heskey’s
retirement from international football and the injury to Peter Crouch
meant Capello had no option but to abandon his preference for a target
man and play Jermain Defoe in unison with a deeper-lying Wayne Rooney.

Immediately the dynamic was changed.

Long aerial passes,
of which Steven Gerrard often used to over-play, became pointless and
the emphasis was on quick incisive passing into the feet of mobile
strikers.

It worked a treat
and the only surprise was that England failed to add to the early
opener scored by Rooney – his first competitive goal for his country
for nearly a year.

Perfect display

Rooney’s vision is
wasted when he leads the line chasing down the channels and his
movement and passing against Bulgaria was a reminiscent of his
Manchester United team mate Paul Scholes at his best.

Skipper Gerrard
clearly reveled in his role too, which was more akin to the position he
plays to such effect with Liverpool and the dilemma Capello now faces
is what happens when Frank Lampard, ruled out through injury, is fit
again?

“The first half was
perfect – everything the manager asked of us,” Gerrard, who played in
the lively Adam Johnson for England’s second goal, said after the game.

“We got the game plan spot on. People were talking about how good Switzerland are, defensively, but we just tore them apart.”

Manchester City’s
Johnson, who replaced the injured Theo Walcott early on, has scored in
both Euro 2012 qualifiers and oozes composure, having stepped up from
the under 21s with fellow City player James Milner, another player to
impress.

England’s defence
coped easily without John Terry and Rio Ferdinand, although the likes
of Michael Dawson, who was injured against Bulgaria, Everton’s Phil
Jagielka and Manchester City’s Joleon Lescott will face much sterner
tests.

With England
already in a commanding position in the group, Capello will now turn
his thoughts to the visit of Montenegro next month – the Balkan side
having emerged as the unlikely challengers for top spot after also
winning their opening games.

England should now
qualify with something to spare from a group that suddenly looks very
enticing but, after all, that is the bare minimum requirement for a
coach costing the Football Association a staggering amount of money
each year.

It is when the pressure is really on and the fear of losing becomes intense that players and managers often revert to type.

So until England qualify for Euro 2012 and prove that they can also
play vibrant football against teams like Spain, Germany and the
Netherlands, when it really matters, Capello will still be shadowed by
the bitter memories of South Africa.