nunes@utai.UUCP (Joe Nunes) (02/11/86)
*** What is the worth of Argentina-86?
*** (Maradona can win little Star Wars)
At a time when the world is ruled by collective football and in contrast with
an ambiguous Italy, (needing desperately of "sunshine" to clean-up and polish
their World Cup title) where Paolo Rossi is just a dim nostalgic memory, a
disorganized West Germany, where Bernd Schuster feuds ridiculously with Franz
Beckenbauer, an irritating Brazil, where facing the eventuality of a caesarian
birth there is no plastic surgery that can mold the great "old men" (Zico,
Socrates, Falcao, Cereze, and company) into a team and where it is necessary at
this hour of crisis to find a "little" Pele, Argentina, as well as the France of
Michel Platini, the Mexico of Hugo Sanchez, the Paraguay of Julio Cesar Romero
(Romerito), the Poland of Boniek, and (why not?) the Portugal of Paulo Futre, is
in a position to enter into a small-scale Star Wars. Adding to World Cup 86 the
exciting extra of a struggle between super-talented figures which can consecrate
to the history books high-level football competitions.
This can occur because it so happens that there exists a 25 year old "kid",
small and compact, by the name of Diego Armando Maradona, a veritable golden-boy
of Argentinian football. he is today the King of Naples, after a career
beginning in Argentinos Juniors, continued in the almost legendary Boca Juniors,
and later "universalized"; first in Spain where he received as many fouls as
pesetas, and now in Italy where he earns much more and suffers much less.
"Dieguito" is today the captain of his national team which he decisively helped
to earn a berth in Mexico. Either we are very much mistakened or he will be,
in Mexican lands, more than a Platini (specially "built" to be the star in the
stupendous incubator of French football), a player whom the local public will
distinguish and consecrate as the major attraction. The question to be asked is:
will this be enough to transform an Argentina, for many years psyched-out by a
sort of ancestral calling to produce antiquated and sub-competitive football,
into one of the favorites of World Cup 86?
We wouldn't risk the affirmative if Argentina-86 was merely an anarchic
group of "Maradona plus 10 others". This is a formula that can have no success
in modern football. However, the fact is that the squad has real potential to
reach its desired goal if coach Carlos Bilardo can find the right prescription
(he is also a medical doctor) and manage to do what he has proposed: to combine
a fine technical style (which shouldn't be renounced) with some "muscle",
discipline, and a spiritual rigour (or European sense) which will give it the
competitiveness it has lacked. This proposal is snubbed by the conservative
football elite of the country who say in effect: "We know very well where that
road leads, to a squad that is neither fish nor meat, which allows itself to
be paralyzed by a hybrid style, and everything goes down the drain again".
It is clear that, with this attitude, nothing can be done. Since the correct
option and, since the last time we checked our mail, the only possible one
is not being proposed from the inside out, it corrodes the soul and faith of the
players, confuses them, demoralizes them, and leads once again to chaos. Is
there no way to avoid this "tragedy"? We think that there is because this
Argentina, which can achieve a stylistic stability impossible during the
qualification phase which catches its emigrant players in a period of football
saturation, has much more than just Maradona to create its own spring. Aside
from "Dieguito" it possesses:
1. A defensive backbone formed by the keeper (Filol) and by one of the
central defenders (Passarella) who has enough experience to give and
sell and, therefore, has complete command of his sector. The "virgins"
Camino and Garre will directly benefit from this.
2. A nucleus of working midfielders, where the "universalized" Barbas and
Burruchaga are particularly of note, the latter being the latest
sensation in Argentinian football. His skills mix well with those of
the "domestic" Giusti.
3. A group of forwards of extra-Argentinina style. To note: Valdano
(Real Madrid), Pasculli (Lecce), and Gareca (America de Cali).
Well, within this framework Maradona can be a player without tactical
finesse and still get by. All that is needed, therefore, is the "political"
will of the Argentinian "aficion" to stimulate this team without continuously
reminding it of a semi-mythological past little likely of being resurrected.
*** From the South American Golden Triangle of football: Argentinian football,
*** love it or hate it.
Argentina makes up with Brazil and Uruguay what can be called the Golden
Triangle of South American football. A collection of countries that alone has
won half of the 12 World Cup titles so far handed out (Brazil: 3, Uruguay: 2,
Argentina: 1). A notable fact is that 5 of these 6 titles were won in its
natural "habitat" in conditions (geographic and human) which fully favour its
style of play, and which provide further evidence for the Continental Law.
In this historic triangle we feel that no one will contradict the fact that
Argentina has been a sort of rebellious cousin. And aside from its childish
and romanticized boycotts of some World Cup competitions (1938, 1950, 1954)
we have to put into focus, more for worse than for better, the contrast
between its "tango-style" football and the football-art-rhythm-trance-hypnosis
of the Brazilians and the football-struggle-mysticism, notably simpler and
more European, of the Uruguayans. Argentina is then without doubt the
"ugly duckling" (but, maybe because of this, the most stubborn and obstinate)
in the great South American "barnyard".
Transformed into an idiosyncratic conservative force, muscled by a
nostalgic public opinion, this Argentinian style of play has been a terrible
obstacle to a reformation that would consider the natural evolution of the game.
A reformation which would adopt a conciliatory attitude in which technique
would be a priviliged component, yes sir, but without it dragging along a
constant antagonism, derived from an extreme narcissism, towards collective
play. We can't ignore that certain sectors of the Argentinian football
"inteligenzia" have made repeated attempts to modernize the old style, to
give it a collective style and the competitiveness necessary in modern football.
Nine years ago a team of Argentinian football coaches performed an in-depth
comparison of Argentinian and European football. They developed some
interesting criticisms of Argentinian football:
1. The excessive proximity of the player with the ball to his teammates
gave a large edge to the defensive play of the Europeans.
2. Many individual plays were easily thwarted due to a delay in initiating
the play.
3. There were too many easily interceptible crosses.
4. There were inumerable situations in which the player in possession of the
ball had no options due to the lack of mobility of his teammates. This
resulted in a continuation of individual effort.
5. The more attacking players often insisted in individual play against
defenders in full control of their territory, resulting in the
inexcusable loss of playable balls.
All this has led to a suicidal sub-competitiveness. But now in face of
the enviable ease of its group, considering the advantage of playing in its
"home" continent, by making intelligent use of the experience of its emigrant
players (especially those playing in Europe) isn't this the time for Argentina
to place itself, with all legitimacy, among the X favorites of World Cup 86?
We think so.