Fabio Capello has condemned John Terry for making "a very big mistake" by publicly calling for senior players to stand up to the England manager after the side's stuttering start to the World Cup.

The Italian claimed the deposed captain had let down his team-mates by effectively implicating them in a perceived coup that was due to take place at a meeting on Sunday evening. Terry felt compelled last night to issue a public apology and is understood to have privately said sorry to some of his colleagues, who were dismayed by his conduct.

Terry was left isolated by their refusal to back him and the team meeting passed off without incident after the defender was

warned of the implications of speaking out by a member of Capello's coaching staff. Asked whether England had been on the verge of a player revolt to match that which has erupted in the France squad, Capello said: "No, it's not a revolution. It's one mistake from one player, no more. I read yesterday that John Terry said this. I don't understand why he doesn't speak with me every time.

"I think he's more disappointed some players because, when you speak, you have to speak privately, not with the media. This is the big mistake. This is very big mistake. I know sometimes some players want to speak more with the media than with the other players. The mistake is you have to speak with the players, with me, with the dressing room.

"I spoke with some players, and only John Terry said this. No one spoke with me about problems. My door is open always if they want to speak with me. They can. Every time we have a meeting I ask the captain: '[Are there any] problems? You want to say something?' Never. But I hope that from the big mistake comes out a big performance."

The Italian was just as unimpressed with Terry's ill-advised call for Joe Cole to be selected in tomorrow's decisive match against Slovenia, with the defender's comments seen as betraying a lack of respect to his other team-mates.

Terry completed his climbdown last night by apologising publicly. "I went into yesterday's press conference with the intention of being honest," he told the Daily Mail. "I was asked a question about Joe Cole and maybe I went too far. But it was never my intention to upset the manager or the players and, if I did upset anyone, I apologise.

"I have told the manager he has my total support and I would like to stress that I don't believe I have been a disruptive influence in the camp. I would now like to put this episode behind me and concentrate on trying to win what is a massive game for England. All I was trying to do was to say how important it is to me to try to win the World Cup."

Terry is not alone in hoping Cole features against Slovenia and there remains the very real possibility that the 29-year-old will make his first appearance of the tournament in a game Capello counts as "one of the biggest" of his career.

Yet Terry's honesty when asked about the midfielder's possible recall – "I personally think he and Wayne [Rooney] are the only two who can open up defences," he said – was not welcomed by the management. "It's another mistake when you speak about one player because there is no respect for the players that play before," said Capello. "Always the players think individually. I have to think about the team. That's important. When you speak you have to be careful. Joe Cole is one of the 23 players who are here. I think you have to respect the other players who have played before."

Asked about the mood in the squad after the suggestion on Sunday of a challenge to his authority, Capello said: "Probably one or two are not happy but the majority are happy. For this reason it is no problem. One player is not so important compared to all the other players. The group is more important than one player. If somebody wants to speak with me, he can speak. I always tell people they can speak, but yesterday nobody spoke. We saw the [Algeria] game without any comments.

"The spirit in the camp is fantastic. Not good – it's incredible. I just spoke with the other coaches and they say: 'It's incredible.' They are training really well. The spirit was there, the smiles and the players together. Everything is like the best moment of their lives. But I want to see this during the game, not only in training. We have prepared everything perfectly for the players: they can swim, go to the gym and train. The players are free and can go where they want. Everything is more or less perfect. But we are here to play at the World Cup and not for a holiday."

Capello will play Matthew Upson at centre-half in the absence of the injured Ledley King and the suspended Jamie Carragher. "Upson will play because he played always with John Terry [for England]," said the Italian. "I will probably change some other players."

That could see Jermain Defoe start alongside Rooney at the expense of Emile Heskey, with Capello intent upon England quickening the tempo of England's passing and movement. Shaun Wright-Phillips or Cole could replace Aaron Lennon on the right, while both midfielders could feature if the management opt instead for a more radical switch to 4-3-3 or 4-5-1 with Steven Gerrard playing off a lone front man.

Those combinations have been scrutinised in training this week, with England now left with one session — at Royal Bafokeng this morning given the state of the sandy pitch at the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium — to fine-tune their approach ahead of the fixture against Slovenia. The game is to be refereed by Wolfgang Stark, an official Terry had, ironically enough, denounced as "disrespectful" after Chelsea's Champions League elimination to Internazionale last season.

"Today was the same as the last times: we trained very well," added Capello. "I'm really happy with that. But we had a meeting on Sunday and we saw what really happened on the pitch during the first half against Algeria. I hope the players understand what really happened during this game. And I hope, also, that on Wednesday the performance of the players will be the same I can see every day here in the training camp.

"It's a mental thing, absolutely. Physically, they're training very well. The tests are good. But when you are in a game the pressure sometimes is big and the legs don't work normally. This is what happens. I remember it happened to me as a player during one important match. But I think on Wednesday the team will be fit.

"The results have not been not good. I didn't see that spirit on the pitch. We had it at some moments but not for 90 minutes. It was only for five or six minutes that I could see the spirit. I hope that in the next game against Slovenia the spirit will be back like we had it at other times, the same spirit I saw in qualifying. This is one of the biggest games of my career because, after this match, we have no more chances. We have to win."