CAPELLO WON`T STALL ON TERRY

Fabio Capello is expected to announce on Friday whether John Terry will keep the England captaincy.

The England head coach is considering the options available to him following newspaper allegations that the Chelsea skipper had an affair with the former partner of international team-mate Wayne Bridge.

Capello is understood to be keen to have the issue settled before he travels to Warsaw for the Euro 2012 qualifying draw this weekend.

He has asked his assistant Franco Baldini, who is more fluent in English than Capello, to handle the situation and to keep in touch with 29-year-old Terry.

When Capello returns to England on Thursday - he was due to have an appointment today with a consultant in Switzerland about his recent knee surgery - he will then assess the situation and a decision is likely to be announced on Friday.

The idea behind making a decision swiftly is that it would leave Capello able to concentrate on the draw on Sunday without the distraction of the captaincy issue.

It is unclear, however, whether Capello will deem it necessary to have a face-to-face meeting with Terry before making his decision or be content to rely on Baldini's conversations with the player.

The key factor in Capello's mind will be what is least damaging for the England team.

In the short term, there is a friendly match looming against Egypt on March 3, for which both Terry and Bridge - if fit - would both normally be selected for the squad.

Beyond that, Capello is looking to the World Cup finals in South Africa in June and must decide which course of action could impact least on the team's chances of success.

The FA have said Capello will make his decision "on footballing grounds".

An FA spokesman said last night: "Fabio is fully up to speed with developments regarding John Terry. He spoke with our chairman Lord Triesman and chief executive Ian Watmore today, who both backed him to make the best decision for England on footballing grounds.

"Fabio is dealing with the matter in his own way using his extensive experience as a football manager."

Bridge's former girlfriend, the woman reported to have had an affair with Terry, is determined to protect her young son from the media frenzy.

Vanessa Perroncel remains at the centre of a bidding war for her story - with offers believed to be around £250,000.

But her publicist Max Clifford said Ms Perroncel's main concern remained her son with Bridge, three-year-old Jaydon.

The French underwear model was doing everything possible to make sure the youngster remained "unaware" of the media furore.

And the publicist added that he did not believe Ms Perroncel was in love with the England skipper, although they had been "close friends" for years.

Mr Clifford, who has been handling negotiations on Ms Perroncel's behalf, said her son was collected by his father on Tuesday morning and taken to his Manchester home.

"Wayne came down to pick up their little boy at about 10am. He was at the house for about five or 10 minutes before they went back to Manchester," he said.

"Obviously the pair of them are both doing everything they can to make life as normal as possible for their son who is only three years old.

"He seems to be okay. Obviously they are trying to make sure that as far as possible he is unaware of what's going on."

And he said the couple, who have yet to speak out about the allegations, were going through "a very emotional time".

"It's a horrible feeling to know you are being betrayed by a close friend," said Mr Clifford. "They are all going through a very bad time. It's a very emotional time for both of them."

Bridge, 29, who plays for Manchester City, will look after Jaydon for the next couple of days. He and Ms Perroncel have shared childcare since their relationship ended in July.

Mr Clifford brushed off allegations relating to further misdemeanours made in the press.

He has so far refused to be drawn on the veracity of the alleged affair, but has insisted some press claims were incorrect.

And he dismissed suggestions Ms Perroncel was in love with the Chelsea defender - a "close friend" of many years - telling Sky News: "That's not the impression she's given me."

He also denied suggestions the model had received a "counter offer" from the England captain to stop her from going public.

A final decision on whether she will sell her story has yet to be made, though six media outlets have reputedly submitted bids for her take on events.