Capello converts nation of doubters

It's amazing what can be done in ninety minutes.

In just an hour and a half the English football team managed to convert a nation of football fans from cynics to ardent followers.

In the same period a 19-year-old prodigy was elevated to the status of national hero and a moody Italian became the next messiah.

The national side was at a low ebb before last night's tie in Zagreb and the impact of the result cannot be underestimated.

The scoreline will reverberate around the country so too will a few of the individual performances.

Of course it was - first and foremost - all about Theo, it was a seminal moment in the young man's career but the context in which it will be remembered will be determined over the next couple of years.

Will we look back a few years down the line and recall how this was the night the boy became a man, the prospect became a star?

Or will we be looking at a still unfulfilled talent and wondering what could have been?

There is no doubt Walcott has the ability to go to the highest level, it is a simple fact that even the best defender in the world is troubled by pace and that is something the Arsenal youngster has in spades.

I remember when he first came onto the scene at Southampton, Walcott's boss at the time Harry Redknapp said he looks like if he ran over water wouldn't make a splash.

He simply glides effortlessly at a deceptively searing pace in a manner that reminds me of (apologies to the non-egg chasers) Jeremy Guscott in his prime for England.

Walcott has skill to but his all round game is a work in progress.

His touch is erratic to say the least and his finishing, although deadly last night, still needs work.

Walcott is also a forward by inclination and tracking back will never come naturally if he stays on the wing.

The two buzz words that Capello and others have come to associate with Theo's performances in the last two internationals are freedom and fearlessness.

The youngster has played with his intuition rather than be trapped by the enormity and pressure of the situation much like a young Wayne Rooney.

Could it be that Sven was onto something when he picked Walcott as a 17-year-old for the World Cup in Germany?

It's a shame the Swede never saw fit to trust his own instinct and allow him onto the pitch.

But it wasn't just Walcott who shone in the Maksimir Stadium, Rooney was imperious in the second half and Emile Heskey was a brute up front.

Heskey has always been a footballer with an astounding capability for polarising opinion.

But there is nothing debatable about what he does - he works tirelessly, wins balls and provides a target for teammates.

What people are endlessly debating is not Heskey himself but his type striker he represents - the non-goalscoring forward who plays for the team.

There was of course luck involved in last night’s triumph, not least the debatable decision to send off Robert Kovac with the score at 1-0.

The starting line up was also picked for Capello during a ten minute period against Andorra and ended up being just about the most balanced side England have ever put out.

But it is one thing having all the luck and quite another making the most of it.

England did so in the most emphatic fashion and it will now be interesting to see how Capello copes with the return to fitness of the likes of Steven Gerrard and Michael Owen for next month’s ties against Kazakhstan and Belarus.