Defender Wes Brown joined goalkeeper Paul Robinson and retired from England duty on Sunday, just a day after being recalled to the squad.
A chaotic day for Capello began when Robinson announced that he did not want to be behind Joe Hart and Ben Foster in the pecking order.
Having heard Robinson’s announcement in the morning, Brown in the evening went to tell Capello he also no longer wanted to play for his country.
Brown, whose England debut was against tomorrow’s opponents Hungary in 1999, made the last of his 23 appearances against Egypt in March.
“After a lot of thought and with a very heavy heart, I have decided the time is right for me to retire from international football,” Brown said. “At the age of 30, I feel it is right for me to stand aside and let younger players come through, which allows me to concentrate on my club career.”
There was confusion on Sunday over Capello’s decision to drop Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick from the squad, which now only has 21 players after Brown and Robinson withdrew.
While United manager Alex Ferguson had ruled Carrick out of the match on Friday, the player featured in the Community Shield victory over Chelsea. As Carrick went to collect his medal, Capello appeared to gesture that he thought the player was injured and made a phone sign with his right hand.
Just beforehand, defender Ashley Cole was seen ignoring Capello’s outstretched arm offering a handshake as he went up with his teammates. British media suggested Cole “blanked” and “snubbed” Capello.
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