England boss Fabio Capello gives backing for FA's proposed £80m national football centre at Burton

On a day when FA chairman Lord Triesman echoed the concerns of Kevin Keegan that the Barclays Premier League was in danger of becoming boring, Capello urged his employers to press ahead with plans for 'the home' of the England team in Burton-on-Trent where coaches and players can be developed.

England players have traditionally enjoyed the luxury of five-star hotels before matches, but Capello has seen how much success the French have had since they built their own NFC at Clarefontaine and the Italian disciplinarian was delighted to hear the FA intend to have Burton operational by 2010.

'A national football centre is of paramount importance to the national team,' he said, interrupting the press conference at Wembley to make his point.

'It will help having a place where we belong, where we live the spirit and feel what it means to wear the shirt.'

In a report published yesterday, the FA highlighted 12 key aims, including: 'England's senior men's and women's teams qualifying for major competitions and reaching the semi-finals, at least, by 2012.'

No mention was made of what the governing body expected of Capello and his team at the 2010 World Cup, but chief executive Brian Barwick said the semi-finals was the least England should expect to reach in any tournament.

Capello added: 'You must always be positive and my objectives have been the same with any team I have managed. I want to go to the very top.

'It is no surprise to me that targets have been set and it is right to have targets. We should be confident because I believe we have a team that is capable of meeting those objectives.'

Capello backed the FA's desire to appoint a new performance director, though the role is not entirely clear. In literature distributed yesterday, the responsibilities were described as 'leading the performance system', working with 'athletes and coaches' and creating a 'winning climate and culture' and a 'world class infrastructure'.

Lord Triesman said a performance director would travel the world studying the coaching techniques of different countries, foreign clubs and even different sports, reporting back to Capello and the FA. He wants to appoint an Englishman but the manager of the national team will have a significant influence over the final decision.

Capello said: 'I believe I can bring useful experience to the FA, having worked in Italy and Spain, but if you think you know everything you will fall. You have to be humble and recognise you can still learn.'

The FA listed a number of other objectives, including:

Moving from Soho Square to Wembley, probably by this time next year.

Making the new stadium profitable by 2012.

Winning their bid to host the 2018 World Cup.

Introducing another 8,000 referees into grassroots football and improving overall disciplinary performance by 25 per cent in four years.

The development of players who will one day occupy places in the England team as well as the top Premier League teams remains a major concern.

Triesman worries about the gulf between the top four and the rest of the English game.

'An objective view would point to the fact that people are still prepared to pay large sums of money for TV rights around the world, so I guess they don't find it boring,' he said.

'But there is a point to what Kevin Keegan is saying. An over-concentration of power and wealth is likely to make it a less exciting game overall. It hasn't happened yet but there is a danger it will happen.'