I Haven't Yet Decided On Who Will Captain England In Euro 2012 Qualifier Against Montenegro - Fabio Capello

England manager Fabio Capello has admitted that he is still to decide on whether or not he will hand the captaincy back to Rio Ferdinand for the Euro 2012 qualifier against Montenegro.

The Manchester United defender was handed the armband when John Terry lost if following a much publicised controversy - that also saw Wayne Bridge call time on his international career.

But the centre-half was unable to travel to the World Cup owing to a knee problem, while Steven Gerrard capitalised on the opportunity to fill in as an impressive replacement.

With both players expected to be named in the squad that for the qualifier against Montenegro, the national team manager now has been forced to make a decision on who will skipper his side.

has already lost captaincy at club level to fellow defender Nemanja Vidic for similar reasons.

The former Red Devils skipper has only played six of England's last 22 games owing to injury and fitness problems.

When asked if the United defender would be reinstated as captain if he should be fit for the qualifier, Capello said in a pre-squad announcement media briefing: "I will decide after seeing which players are fit.

"I haven't decided. I can't speak about who will be captain. I hope all the players will be fit and then I will announce it.

"Why not Ferdinand? No, no no. Wait. I can't speak about if, if, if..."

Concerning the change in captaincy at Old Trafford, he added: "I think Sir Alex [Ferguson] decided on one player that played more games [Vidic] and be sure he is always fit. I think so.

"It is important always that the players have to be fit for a lot of games."

In the meantime, Capello also gave Gerrard a pat on the back for the duties he as performed until this point.

He said: "Gerrard is a really good captain. He is captain of Liverpool, and he always plays like a leader on the pitch."

The former Real Madrid and Juventus boss also reiterated his desire to leave his current position following the Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine, while insisting at the same time that he intends to play no part in the the appointment of his successor.

"Will anything change my mind? No. I've decided. It is not a problem if we win or lose (in 2012).

"I've decided. I think after four years, one World Cup, not good results, one Euro, is enough. It is good experience for a manager."

He added: "Will I decide who replaces me? Absolutely not. It will be a new era.

"I am asked should the next manager be English but it is the decision of the FA.

"I think in England there are good managers - but the FA has to decide about this."

In the immediate future, however, Capello remains as boss and is now subject to a striker crisis, as Emile Heskey recently declined to come out of international retirement to feature against Montenegro.

This comes in light of Wayne Rooney still recovering from his ankle injury, while long-term absentees Jermain Defoe and Bobby Zamora will be unavailable for the upcoming qualifier.

Despite such problems, the Italian insisted that his gaze is not turned towards Manchester United's Michael Owen, who has a plethora of experience in the international arena - having scored 40 goals in 89 appearances for the national team.

Capello also confirmed that the game is too early for him to consider handing midfielder David Beckham a return to international football, with the 35-year-old having previously missed the World Cup owing to injury.

"No, he [Owen] has just played 15 minutes [in the Premier League, apart from the game against Sunderland] and he also played in the Carling Cup," said the manager.

"With David Beckham, I am really happy he is fit. Is he in contention? At this moment, no. He has been out for six months."

The 64-year-old also confirmed that he will call up Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere, while maintaining that the youngster will first play the first leg of the Under-21 European Championship play-off game against Romania before joining up with the senior squad.

In the meantime, Newcastle United striker Andy Carroll was not called up for the aforementioned play-off, prompting suggestions that he could be in line to be given a look into the squad.

However, Capello maintained that he first needs to speak with his U-21 counterpart Stuart Pearce concerning the young forward.

He said: "Yes, there will be some new faces. Wilshere is one of these.

"I didn't watch the Champions League game [against Partizan Belgrade] because I was at Chelsea but he is a very interesting player.

"If you play all the games at one team like Arsenal, it is really important.

"He played very well the last game. I spoke with [assistant manager] Franco [Baldini] who watched the game.

"He will play the first game with the Under-21s. If he is fit, he will play for the Under-21s versus Romania. After, he will be with us.

"With Andy Carroll, I heard he has this injury. I have to speak with Stuart Pearce.

"I met him in manager meetings and he told me there is some problem with this player. Is it an injury? I don't know. We spoke about Carroll."

The former AC Milan manager then maintained that Liverpool's Joe Cole and West Ham United goalkeeper Robert Green return to contention.

"Joe Cole will be in the provisional squad, the 34-35 players," said Capello. "He is one of the players I know very well, and he is playing all the games. He has a chance of making the squad. It is possible.

"I saw the pictures of Robert Green. It was the reaction after a not good period. I am happy for him that he is back. Will he be back? He is one of the four 'keepers [in contention]."

The England manager also shared his views on the problems that affect modern day footballers, with Rooney having recently having made headlines in the tabloids for all the wrong reasons.

Following revelations concerning the footballer's private life and his lacklustre form, ex-national team boss Kevin Keegan claimed that the striker's "confidence is shot".

"I think at this moment, when you play [if you have private problems] it is better because you are focused on the game and training," Capello said.

"I read about what Kevin Keegan said and think when you have a problem in the private life it is always something different in the lifestyle of the players.

"You can write about a player's performance but it is very different when you are entering the private life."

But the Italian stressed that this is nothing new in the world of a footballer's life, adding: "Not only now, but before there were the same problems every year - in Italy, Spain and the world.

"It is young people, young men with a lot of money. A lot of money is sometimes one problem, a positive problem. Sometimes.

"Does that make modern management impossible? No. It is private problems. It depends on the people they stay around, the friends.

"Some suffered with it, for others it is normal and they are able to separate the two [professional and personal life] and cope better. I remember I had some players with big problems but we won."

Capello finally came back to Rooney, and insisted that the recent criticism concerning lacklustre performances at club level is not a cause for concern.

He said: "The games Rooney played in the new position, he played very well. I was very happy. I hope he will be fit for the next game.

"I can speak about the performances for the national team, not about the performances for United.

"I saw one game he played at home against Liverpool and he played a good game for me."

England play host to Montenegro at Wembley on October 12.