His fitness as a manager has been questioned, even by the countrymen who worship him for what he did on the soccer pitch as a player. But with his team putting in a performance that could only be described as feisty, and a single goal deciding their fate in the 84th minute, Diego Maradona and his Argentine team silenced their critics and for now at least, Argentina’s favorite son is just that once again.
In typical Maradona style his reaction to his team’s victory over Uruguay was extremely emotional. Flying to the center of the pitch to hug his players and crying with joy, no one could doubt his passion for what he does now. One has to ask if he knew that by virtue of Chile’s defeat of Ecuador earlier in the day both teams on the pitch would have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup whatever the result. Before that happened the loser would have been hoping for a place off place at very best. If he did, it did nothing to tone his emotional reaction down.
The winning goal was side footed from Mario Bolatti out of the midst of a goal mouth tussle. He had been brought on for Gonzalo Higuain a mere four minutes earlier, making Maradona appear a tactical genius, even though those who have criticized his managerial skills recently have made a point of attacking his selection decisions.
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