ANDRE Villas-Boas believes it won't be easy for England to find someone with Fabio Capello's standing to take over as boss – such is the Italian's track record.

The Chelsea boss said he was as surprised as anyone by yesterday's resignation by the England coach – who was at loggerheads with the FA of the decision to strip Blues skipper John Terry of the national team captaincy - and does not believe it will automatically be for the best.

“It surprised me for sure, and it will be very very difficult for the FA to find a manager with Fabio's CV because it's one of the best in the world, said Villas-Boas.

“He's been a successful manager in most of the clubs where he has managed, and he had a spectacular qualification for the the Euro 2012.

“It comes to an end before the tournament, which I think is hard to take for the English national team, even bearing in mind there's still plenty of time before the tournament for the new manager to get acquainted with the team and to prepare for the tournament.

“I'm not in a position to say what triggered Capello's resignation because I don't have that inside information, but I would say it's a surprise and a pity to lose such a successful figure in world football. I hope it can be recovered by finding an adequate person for the job.”

Harry Redknapp is a firm favourite for the job, and Villas-Boas, although guarded about who should be installed at Wembley, acknowledges the Spurs boss as a good front runner.

“I don't know who should get it,” he said. “It's a very specific job. Exciting of course and extremely demanding, and you under public scrutiny for most of the time, but hopefully a good solution will be found.

“There are big big favourites for the job and expectancy regarding Harry's future, but it's up to the FA to decide. If it was to be him, I would congratulate him. He's had an outstanding career, made even better over time.”

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