Bish's Briefs: We won't cry for you Argentina

2009-10-13

So a goal from a striker who hadn’t scored an international goal in over 10 years saved Diego Maradona’s blushes and allowed him to acrobatically throw his primed athletic figure across the turf of Buenos Aires’ El Monumental on Saturday night - unleashing scenes not seen in the stadium since the Albicelestes World Cup triumph on home soil 31 years ago.

Perhaps it was the divine intervention he had been talking of?

On Wednesday, Diego's side head across the River Plate to take on their old foes, Uruguay, in South American football’s oldest rivalry. Over the years the sides have played out some epic battles, including Uruguay’s 4-2 win over Argentina in the inaugrual World Cup Final in 1930.

Inside the Estadio Centenario, the scene of that 1930 World Cup Final - Argentina’s first World Cup disappointment, they meet for the 177th time aiming to secure qualification to South Africa 2010 with a squad as well assembled as Louis Walsh’s contender’s for this year’s X-Factor.

The tears flowing from the eyes of Argentina’s most revered sporting icon in the pouring rain of Bueno Aires on Saturday night were an embarrassment. Imagine Fabio Capello showing the same emotions if England had grabbed a last-minute winner against the worst team in Europe at Wembley?

Argentina came unsurprisingly flying out of the blocks on Saturday, yet after Gonzalo Higuain had marked his international debut with the opener, moments after the usual 20-plus minute South American interval, Argentina retreated into their shell, with a midfield unable to control the game against a side that had won twice in 16 previous qualifiers, during a campaign that started back in 2007.

Missing from action for Maradona’s men on Saturday were Fernando Gago, Javier Zanetti and Juan Roman Riquelme - all proven performers on the world stage. In their place, Jonas Gutierrez of Newcastle, Enzo Perez, on his first senior call-up, and Pablo Aimar, winning his first cap since July 2007.

As for Higuain, a man who repeatedly turned down the advances of France in the hope of receiving a call from Diego, he finally won his first call-up after warming the bench for half of Real Madrid’s games this season. Twenty-two goals in 34 La Liga appearancess last season were obviously not impressive enough. ‘Pin the tail on the donkey’ is the only suitable comparison to Maradona’s selection policy.

How this can happen with Carlos Bilardo (coach of that Diego-inspired 1986 World Cup winning side) now working as Maradona’s wingman, defies belief. Perhaps the fact that the man who appointed Maradona, Julio Grondona, also works immediately under Sepp Blatter as FIFA senior vice-president goes a long way to explaining the nation’s calamitous attempt to reach next year’s World Cup.

In essence, Argentina’s win doesn’t change much. A defeat in Montevideo on Wednesday, and a win for Ecuador, which they would have needed regardless of Martin Palermo’s last-gasp winner, against Chile in Santiago, will see Maradona watching the World Cup smoking cigars around his swimming pool instead of from a technical area.

Common logic suggests that Uruguay will have too much for their visitors on Wednesday night. Argentina have never won a World Cup Qualifier in Uruguay and have only won once on the road in this campaign - way back in October 2007 when they won 2-0 against Venezuela in Maricabo - their first away game of the tournament. They have also lost the last four on their travels, including that 6-1 defeat v Bolivia in April - the joint-heaviest defeat in their history.

Argentina’s divine intervention this time may come from 54-year-old Argentine, Marcelo Bielsa, who coaches the already qualified Chile. He’ll be keen to improve a reputation that was severely dented when he oversaw his home nation’s embarrassing Group Stage exit, at a tournament they entered as favourites after a blistering qualification campaign, when the World Cup went to the Far East in 2002.

Ahead of Wednesday, Argentines will be delighted to see their eternal rivals Brazil sitting pretty at the top of the South American World Cup Qualifying Group in the command of one of their former captains. They’ll also be revelling in the fact that in 2014 the World Cup comes to Brazil, and just two years later, the Olympic party follows.

Still Diego could play a bit back in the day couldn’t he?

- Andy Bishop

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