Capello bemoans language barrier in Russia

Moscow - Russia coach Fabio Capello spoke Monday of his frustration at the language barrier hindering his work with the country’s football team.

Capello was widely criticised in the press for his perceived poor command of the language during his time with England, but said the factor holding him back in Moscow was Russians’ lack of English.

“It’s difficult to read and to learn the Cyrillic alphabet, and also because there aren’t many people who speak English, so I always need a translator,” Capello said on the UEFA website.

“To think that somebody is translating what I want to say, they might translate it with some of their ideas or according to their feelings.”

He added: “I would say it’s difficult, but as with all difficult challenges, I like to take them on.”

Under Capello, Russia have won both of their competitive matches, beating Northern Ireland 2-0 and Israel 4-0 in World Cup qualifiers, as well as a 1-1 friendly draw with the Ivory Coast.

Russia next play Portugal Friday in a World Cup qualifier, followed by another group game against Azerbaijan Tuesday.