The Italian has never shied away from puncturing a few egos during his managerial career.

And the new England manager has wasted little time bringing a much-needed dose of reality into his squad's cossetted existence.

He had already served notice that reputation is no longer enough to play for England when he left David Beckham out of the squad for his first match against Switzerland today.

The former England captain was sitting on 99 caps and many observers thought the friendly would have been ideal to hand him his century.

But Capello was only just getting started.

While he respects the ability of his stars, the necessity for total concentration on the task at hand while on international duty needed to be reinforced a little more.

Among the new rules the Italian laid down:

Friends and agents are not welcome at the team hotel.

Players must be on time for meals and eat at the same table.

Time together is important, rather than the players' habit of playing computer games in their rooms.

No walking around in shorts and flips-flops. The England track suit must be worn, while suits and ties must be worn to games, reported The Daily Mail.

While it is the kind of regimen that may not be received with universal delight among England's pampered millionaires, Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard believes Capello's different approach is just what the under-achieving England team needed.

'I wouldn't say you have to intimidate players but you have to get their respect and let them know who's the boss. What he says goes and we have to adapt to that,' said Gerrard.

'It's all about seriousness and getting results in an England shirt.'

Capello, who has been addressing the players only by surname, is going to keep them waiting for the team line-up until 90 minutes before kick-off at Wembley.

That way he has their attention and focus until the last minute.

It is a routine that holds no fears for Gerrard.

'It creates anxiety when the manager keeps players waiting to find out the team. I am used to that,' he said.

Capello's authoritarian streak may also extend to team-building.

His core values are discipline and organisation.

At Real Madrid, he often frustrated the home fans by playing with two defensive midfielders in an attempt to grind down the opposition.

That kind of sterile approach is frowned upon at the Bernabeu but, by the end of the season, Real were champions and the Italian had made his point.

After a lacklustre qualifying campaign that ended with England failing to reach Euro 2008, Gerrard has no qualms about sacrificing flair for winning football.

'My first impression is that he's a winner,' said the midfielder. 'He has a certain aura. Probably the third word out of his mouth was winning.

'He never once mentioned individuals, it was all about the team winning.'

'As players you want to win. Whatever it takes, you do it. I would rather play in a team that is difficult to beat even if it's not easy on the eye.

'If I went on to achieve something with an England team that was a bit more defensive, I'd take that.'

As expected, Capello yesterday named Gerrard as captain in the absence of the injured John Terry, who skippered the side under former coach Steve McClaren.

But the Italian will not name a permanent skipper until the World Cup qualifiers begin in September - with matches against Andorra and Croatia.

Michael Owen boosted his chances of starting against the Swiss by scoring for Newcastle United on Sunday, while Jermain Defoe, scorer on his debut for Portsmouth at the weekend, has been added to the squad.

Defoe takes the place of the unfortunate Gabriel Agbonlahor, named in the squad for the first time but forced to withdraw after damaging a hamstring in Aston Villa's 1-2 defeat by Fulham.

Not even Capello can control everything, it seems.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE