Frank Lampard was immaculately turned out in his England blazer and, briefly, as personable as ever when he walked out of the Vasil Levski Stadium and into the balmy Sofia night having just completed a 10-minute cameo appearance for England.

He appeared utterly unperturbed, yet it was not the time for talking. He would have been well aware that the apparent end of his international career would be the only topic of conversation on a night when, although he won his 87th cap, he appeared to drop to fifth-choice central midfielder for England.

Waiting game: Lampard is belatedly sent on by Capello

Fabio Capello seemed to rediscover his ruthlessness in Sofia. Just as David Beckham was initially jettisoned without ceremony when Capello took over the job in 2008, Lampard, central to England's midfield since Euro 2004, now knows that he is no longer a first-choice England player.

'As a manager, I need to choose the players, not the name,' said Capello. 'At this moment for me, Gareth Barry was in really good form.'

For Lampard, the omission came as a shock. All week he had featured in training in what was considered the first team, including the final training session on Thursday night. It is said that he expected to start and learned of his omission only at a team meeting just before leaving the hotel to travel to the ground. As is characteristic of Capello, there was no extended explanation from the manager.

In these moments, Capello resembles the guru of AC Milan, Roma and Real Madrid, the man England thought they had hired when they asked him to rescue the national side from the nadir of failure to qualify for Euro 2008.

He is the strong man, the unchallenged leader and the man with a plan. Admittedly, a woeful Bulgaria side helped Capello restore his image. Wales, though clearly much improved since last March, may do the same again at Wembley on Tuesday night when victory would leave England needing only a point in Montenegro to qualify for Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine.

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