Grondona: Argentines play superior football (24 Feb 2006 18:50 GMT)
Julio Grondona, head of Argentine Soccer Federation, told Argentine radio on Thursday that players from the nation have a superior footballing technique, though any other nation has a chance of winning the World Cup.
Grondona praised Lionel Messi, whose performance stood out during Spanish side Barcelona's 2-1 victory at English premier champions Chelsea, in Wednesday night's Champions League game, comparing his skills to those of all-time legend Diego Maradona of Argentina in the 1979 junior World Cup.
"He is brilliant, and he has a very clear mind. Let us hope that never changes. We have great expectations of him," said Grondona.
"I believe he is at the same level as Maradona when he started playing. He is playing at Diego's 1979 level and a bit more."
He described Wednesday as a day of glory for Argentine football players, thanks to Europe's Champions League.
Juan Roman Riquelme scored a goal for Spanish League team Villarreal in their 2-2 draw with Scots league team Glasgow Rangers, Julio Cruz scored the goal that saved Inter Milan from a humiliating loss in the 2-2 draw between Inter and Holland's Ajax,and Mauro Rosales scored one of Ajax's two goals.
"We do not really know why we have it, but all over the world, in all the cup finals, Argentines are there. Football is the biggest thing this country has," he said.
"Maradona, now 40, is playing football that is better than manylads of 20," he added, reviewing a indoor football match which Argentina won 8-4, with two Maradona goals.
source : Xinhua