England expects... again our england correspondent frank page keeps his post-zagreb feet firmly on the floor...

Good timing and luck have long been the essential weapons in a football manager’s armoury ever since a Mark Robins’ goal saved Sir Alex Ferguson’s neck back in the late 1680’s.

And so it was in Zagreb that the stewardship of Capello was redefined in a single unpredictable evening. For the rapidly diminishing hard-core of travelling supporters and for the millions not watching back home, last week’s victory looks to have provided the platform for a turnaround in fortunes for team England.

And at the same time, the question marks that had begun to surface over Capello were swept aside. After the uninspiring friendly against the Czechs and the workmanlike effort against Andorra, you could be forgiven for thinking that Capello was beginning to sweat like a blind lesbian in a fish market.

Not a bit of it.

Truth be told, if you look at the reams of statistics produced before the latest World Cup double-header, England seemed to be getting better. They had learned to keep the ball better. They had even got better at passing it to team-mates. Against Croatia, there was finally evidence of a cutting edge.

Capello’s selections caused a few murmurings of discontent in the press, particularly the omission of Michael Owen, but his method is now abundantly clear – priority will always be given to players who are match-fit and who are performing regularly with their clubs.

What no-one could have foreseen were the penetration, energy and nouse that England displayed against a team that had twice outplayed them so comprehensively. Although far from a complete performance, it was an astonishing result – but only viewed against the backdrop of the previous two years.

Plaudits for Lampard, Ferdinand, Heskey and Rooney were well-merited. Likewise young Walcott, though Arsenal fans must be wondering if this is the same Theo Walcott who hitherto couldn’t hit a barn door with a banjo at the Emirates. At the same time, the 4-1 scoreline did hide a nervousness in defence that still needs to be addressed.

This being England, the national mood changed rapidly from a general sense of foreboding over the team’s qualification chances to near hysteria at the unveiling of the new Pele and the almost certain knowledge that the World Cup would be heading back to its spiritual home.

Thankfully, Capello’s feet are re-assuringly on terra firma and post-match, he was quick to try and dampen growing expectation. "Let's not get carried away. We have just started. It is the second game of the qualifying round. It is a good performance, a good result, but it is nothing. It is only one game. There is much still to do and games like Belarus and Ukraine will also be tough."

He’s right, of course, and being a pragmatist he’ll know that a victory by such a margin actually does him few favours. He’ll also know that the campaign could turn yet again if his charges throw in a poor performance. Given that we’re dealing with England, we should be ready for the odd twist as the qualifying group unravels.