Argentina will have 12th man in the dressing room again - Diego Maradona
(AP)
Updated: 2006-06-15 08:56
HERZOGENAURACH, Germany - Argentina will have a 12th man in the dressing
room again: Diego Maradona.
Argentina's former
soccer player Diego Maradona waves to fans as he leaves the hotel after
visiting the Argentine team in Herzogenaurach June 12, 2006.
[Reuters] | Argentina's legendary No. 10 was there
for the team's opening 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast, and he's promised to return
for Friday's Group C game against Serbia-Montenegro in Gelsenkirchen.
"He told us many of his anecdotes, and we were astonished watching him,"
defender Roberto Ayala said.
"He makes me feel a lot of things. Imagine being with him before a game, in
the dressing room, giving the pep talk. You go on the field feeling different
when you hear the words and get support from the best player in the world."
Maradona made a surprise visit to Argentina's training camp earlier in the
week, accompanied by his ex-wife Claudia and their daughter.
A white car, which frequently shows up at Argentina practices in northern
Bavaria, spells out the kind of edge Maradona can give. Scribbled on the side is
the message: "The Pope is German. God is Argentine _ Diego X."
A victory on Friday over Serbia-Montenegro - coupled with a Dutch win
over the Ivory Coast the same day - would qualify two-time champion
Argentina for the second round. That would set up the showdown on June 21 in
Frankfurt - the Netherlands vs. Argentina - to decide the top place in
the group.
The two Group C qualifiers face the survivors from Group D - likely to
be Portugal and Mexico.
"It was a beautiful moment. I felt like a player again in the dressing room,"
Maradona said after his visit to the team hotel this week. "It was great, and
I'm going to repeat it against Serbia and the Netherlands - and let's hope
I can repeat it in the final."
Maradona brought Argentina its last World Cup title 20 years ago, and his
last World Cup was 1994 in the United States.
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