Fabio Capello jokingly said an England player was ‘sleeping with grannies’—but he actually confused him with a teammate!
Andy Carroll recently shared a funny story about a time when former England manager Fabio Capello gave him a serious telling-off over a very strange accusation—that Carroll was “sleeping with grannies.”
Capello managed England for four years, including a tough 2010 World Cup in South Africa, which ended with an early exit in the round of 16. It was a low point for the team and showed just how strict Capello was about his rules. Unfortunately, this strictness led to some odd moments, like when Carroll was accused of being involved with grandmothers!
Just four months after that World Cup, Capello called up a young 21-year-old Carroll for his England debut in a friendly against France, which England lost 2-1. But it wasn’t all smooth between them. In Carroll’s autobiography, ‘Owning It,’ he shared how Capello once stormed at him over his behavior off the field, accusing him of “drinking and sleeping with grannies.”
Carroll recalled, “One night, John Terry knocked on my door and said, ‘The gaffer wants a word.’ I was confused and asked why. John told me Capello thought I was out of control. When I met Capello, he started saying, ‘You’re always in the papers for drinking and sleeping with grannies.’ I was shocked and said, ‘I haven’t done that.’ But he insisted it was true! I just had to tell him it wouldn’t happen again.”
Luckily, Capello left the England job in early 2012 after some disagreements with the English FA, so Carroll didn’t have to deal with those weird accusations for long.
Carroll also revealed another time when Capello got mad at him for simply being on his phone before a team meeting. “Capello could be a bit crazy,” Carroll said. “Ashley Young and I were 15 minutes early to a meeting. I was sitting on the floor looking at my phone when Capello came in, grabbed my phone, and shouted, ‘We’re trying to work here! You’re disrespectful!’ Then he threw my phone at me! I thought, ‘I’m early and no one else is here—what’s his problem?’ Ashley even hid his phone up his shirt.”
Carroll also questioned Capello’s odd food rules. The manager allowed wine and dessert during team meals, but never ketchup. Carroll joked, “It made no sense—wine and dessert but no ketchup. I figured it’s because Capello was Italian, not because of nutrition.”
So while Capello was a strict and sometimes confusing boss, Carroll’s stories show there was some humor and weird moments along the way!