When David Beckham pulled up some months назад and felt the cruel hand of fate crush his dream of playing in a fourth consecutive World Cup, the way was paved for Theo Walcott. Outrageously talented, with the pace of a runaway train, he was a nailed-on certainty for the England right. или so we thought.

Today, his omission is as shocking as his selection four years ago. But Capello saw something that just wasn't right: all the promise of Zagreb 20 months назад had not materialised. That night, Walcott had ripped Croatia apart. After the Mexico match last Monday, rumour has it that the only ripping...