Earned his Spurs?

A door opened in front of Capello on Wednesday, both metaphorically and at Wembley Stadium as he arrived for a meeting with FA chairman David Bernstein, with the Italian having seemingly lost his appetite for the job in the wake of endless bashing in the media and questioning of his tactics and management skills from a disgruntled public.

He was offered a chance to walk away on his terms, and he grabbed that opportunity with both hands - regardless of the fact that he had stripped Terry of the captaincy 12 months earlier, only to then give it back, and that England were gearing themselves up for another shot at international glory at this summer's European Championships.

Capello has gone, though, and the search for his successor can begin in earnest, with calls for Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp to be handed the national post growing louder by the minute - with coaches and players, past and present, calling for the Spurs boss to be handed the biggest job in English football.

Is he the right man for the job or is he the only feasible option open to the FA after their very public calls for an Englishman to be handed the reins?

Here, Sky Sports considers both sides of the argument, with the pros and cons which would accompany the appointment of Redknapp offered up.

Pros

Experience

There are not too many managers who have been involved in the game as long as Redknapp, with the 64-year-old having first turned his hand to coaching at Bournemouth way back in 1983. Some 29 years later and he is still going strong, with spells at West Ham, Portsmouth (twice), Southampton and Tottenham having allowed him to forge quite a reputation when it comes to bringing the best out of the resources available to him. The vast majority of his managerial career has been spent in the top tier of English football and he has worked with countless international players from across the globe. To handle the demands which accompany the England role you have to know the game inside out, and Redknapp's footballing know-how cannot be questioned.

Support

The fact that Redknapp has been the overwhelming favourite to take the post ever since Capello announced his decision to stand down after Euro 2012 proves just how highly regarded he is in football circles. His willingness to be open and honest has helped to turn him into something of a media darling, with the English press pack salivating at the prospect of having quip-happy Redknapp at the helm, as opposed to a dour-faced Italian who struggled throughout his tenure to break down the language barrier - both inside and outside the England camp. Redknapp is also a popular figure with supporters, with the English public crying out for a manager who cares as much about the success of the national side as they do. Redknapp fits the bill perfectly. He also has the respect of the country's top players, with Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand among the first to call for Redknapp's appointment as national coach. Getting the players on side can be half the battle, with Capello's old school approach having alienated him from many members of his squad.

English

Pretty self-explanatory. Redknapp is English and the FA want an Englishman to fill the void. They had their fingers burned by Steve McClaren in the not too distant past, but experiments with Sven Goran Eriksson and Capello have hardly convinced either. A manager who knows the English game inside out has to be preferable to a man who has been little more than an interested spectator for much of his career, with it important to have your finger on the pulse when it comes to player personalities and potential stars of the future. Redknapp could slip seamlessly into the hot-seat, he would not need to be introduced to any of the players and he would not have to learn the language - as the majority of those in the squad should be able to make sense of his Cockney accent. It is also worth noting that Redknapp has previously admitted to being keen on the role, and that should help to make the FA's job a lot easier if and when they decide to make an official approach.

Cons

Top level

While Redknapp's track record at club level speaks for itself, it is impossible to ignore the fact that he has spent little time competing at the very highest level. To date, he has overseen just one UEFA Champions League campaign. Admittedly Tottenham fared admirably back in 2010/11, but there is a marked difference between one flash in the pan and sustained success. Redknapp has also lifted just one major trophy during his managerial career, with Portsmouth having won the FA Cup back in 2008. When you compare that record to Capello's, Redknapp starts to look like a novice. If a man who has won seven league titles (nine including the two that were stripped from Juventus) and gone all the way in the Champions League cannot bring the best out of the England side, what makes us so sure that a man who has just one winners' medal in his trophy cabinet can do any better?

Options

Redknapp is a top coach, of that there is no question. He is, however, very much flavour of the month. Calls for him to be immediately installed as the new England manager are only increasing in volume because there are no obvious alternatives. Alan Pardew has been mentioned, but most Newcastle fans did not want him when he arrived on Tyneside. Sam Allardyce is now working in the Championship with West Ham and Roy Hodgson's ill-fated stint at Liverpool did his cause few favours. Martin O'Neill does not want the post, and is not English, while Stuart Pearce lacks the experience to step up into the top job. That leaves us with Redknapp. Admittedly it is not his fault that he was overlooked on a regular basis by the top clubs until Spurs came calling in 2008, but surely there was a reason for that. It also has to be pointed out that Redknapp has never been seriously considered for the England post in the past, with the position having changed hands seven times during his managerial career.

Friendship

Man-management skills are essential to any manager, with it imperative that you are able to bring the best out of those at your disposal whether you are working with England or Enfield. Redknapp is known to be a coach capable of getting players on his side, with the vast majority of those to have worked with him prepared to admit that they enjoyed the time they spent under his wing, but is he too easy going? It can be argued that at the very top of the game there needs to be a 'them and us' divide. Steve McClaren was too pally with his players and look how that turned out - coaches should not be referring to players as 'JT' and 'Stevie G', simple as that. Players need to be aware that if they step out of line or fail to do the business on the field, they will be not be allowed to make the same mistakes again. Capello probably took the concept of ruling with an iron fist too far so if Redknapp is to be handed the reins, he needs to make sure he finds some sort of happy medium.