It is now five days since the www.capelloindex.com website went live, with the England manager insisting it had done so without his knowledge or approval.

Capello's representatives have been working since then to get any reference to the Italian's involvement in the venture removed from the site.

The Football Association had been confident this would be achieved by the end of Monday but the Index's creators have so far failed to comply.

It is unclear whether Capello is taking, or indeed is able to take, legal action over the matter, having originally agreed to lend his name to the venture.

But even if he does, it could be a long time before a court decides whether to uphold his complaint.

Matthew Harris, partner at intellectual property specialists Waterfront Solicitors, today explained the only way Capello can guarantee any association between him and the site is expunged worldwide is to win a legal battle in its country of origin - his native Italy.

But Harris told Press Association Sport: "Historically, the Italian courts have been notorious for the slow way in which they have dealt with cases.

"The difficulty with that is that you could end up in litigation for many years.

"I'm told by Italian colleagues of mine things are a lot better today than they used to be.

"But they do not have a reputation of being as speedy as the UK courts in relation to these things."

Indeed, under English law, Capello could obtain an injunction against the website's creators within a matter of days - or even hours in exceptional circumstances.

But that would only relate to the site in England and assumes its creators would abide by any order.

The nature of Capello's agreement with them would be crucial to the success or failure of any legal action, according to Harris.

"What I don't know is the exact terms of the contract that was reached between him and the Index in the initial stages," he said.

"That's going to be highly relevant here because if he has in any way authorised this and the agreement does not allow him to withdraw that authorisation, he will be in difficulty."

The Capello Index was set up by the national team manager and business partner Chicco Merighi to publicly rank players' performances at the World Cup.

It was shelved until after the tournament amid fears it could create a rift between the Italian and his squad.

Upon their publication at the weekend, the rankings proved to be particularly critical of Capello's own players after their dismal displays in South Africa.

Although seemingly digging their heels in over removing all references to Capello, the site's creators this week deleted the ratings given to England's players and also published a disclaimer distancing Capello from direct involvement in any of the scores given.

Meanwhile, the FA today confirmed the Italian was contractually obliged to seek their approval for any external business ventures.

Capello has reportedly been reminded of his obligations on this front as the fallout from the publication of the Capello Index continues.

The FA declined to comment directly on the matter but did confirm the England manager was subject to the same conditions as any other employee.

It nevertheless appears certain any future venture he undertakes will be subject to greater scrutiny than that which followed his decision to involve himself with the controversial Index.

The FA have already confirmed that, while he remains England manager, Capello would have no further input into the www.capelloindex.com website.