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He is England's new £40 million man; the manager who is expected to lead the country to World Cup glory by restoring discipline and passion to our overpaid and pampered national football squad.

Now it can be revealed that Fabio Capello's footballing philosophy was forged nearly 40 years ago when the new England manager and his team-mates were humbled on the pitch by lowly Swindon Town.

Thrashed 4-0 by the then second division club, Capello's Roma side were handed the sort of lesson in English grit and determination that Capello will strive to recreate in the national side.

Swindon players from that evening have taken credit for giving the England manager a demonstration of teamwork that he has never forgotten.

"We played for one another, always covering for each other," said Peter Downsborough, the goalkeeper, now 64. "Today's England players don't seem to have that team spirit, even though they are all brilliant players.

"If Capello can introduce that team spirit to the England squad, as he has with other clubs he's managed, they might achieve great things."

The game was the final of the long-forgotten Anglo-Italian League Cup Winners' Cup, played in September 1969, with Swindon qualifying after their defeat of Arsenal in the League Cup.

Capello's team, one of the biggest names in Italian football, had travelled to Swindon after a narrow 2-1 victory in the first leg.

The comprehensive drubbing saw Swindon displaying the kind of discipline, concentration and finishing now so lacking in England's "golden generation".

Roma's manager at the time, Helenio "The Wizard" Herrera, who had already twice won the European Champions Cup, observed later: "My team were punished for moments of distraction… We had plenty of opportunities, but Swindon showed us how to shoot."

Paid just a fraction of the current Beckham-era players, the Swindon team that beat AS Roma have since been forgotten by all but the club's most loyal fans.

Mr Downsborough, who is now a school caretaker in Halifax, West Yorkshire, clearly remembers Capello displaying the leadership skills for which he would later become renowned.

"He stood out. He was quite tall and a good ball player," he said. "Roma were always well organised and Capello seemed to be at the heart of their organisation, which is how teams like AC Milan and Real Madrid played when he became their manager."

Following their triumph, Swindon celebrated with a meal at the town's Goddard Arms Hotel, to which Capello and the rest of the Italian players were invited. No bonuses and Bentleys in those days, just a simple steak and a pint down the local.

"In our day players would cut each other's throats to play for England," said Arthur Horsfield, who scored a hat-trick on the night. "Today there's too many of them who don't live in the real world, with their fancy cars, houses and watches that cost the earth."

Swindon's stars of '69 may regret the appointment of an Italian as England manager, but they agree that if anyone can turn our underachieving players into winners, it's Capello.

After all, they taught him how.

Thetownend.com

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