His name is enough to secure him a coaching licence, but Diego Maradona’s forays into management have convinced few of his credentials, reports Ben Backwell
Following Argentina’s disastrous 2002 World Cup campaign, Diego Maradona declared from his Cuban retreat that he was willing to take over coaching the Argentine national team “for free”. “I have always said, and I repeat, that I am willing to manage the team without charging a single peso,” said Maradona, adding that he would put the team “in order”. According to polls carried out by local websites among Argentines then howling for the head of coach Rafael Bielsa, there were few takers, and the offer was discreetly ignored by the country’s football association (AFA).