Argentina legend, Diego Maradona has warned national team coach Jorge Sampaoli to beat Nigeria in the final group D game and qualify to the next stage of the World Cup or stay away from Argentina.
He said the coach will not be welcomed home if he fails to qualify from the group.
Argentina played out a 1-1 draw against Iceland on Saturday and will play group leaders Croatia on Friday before clashing with Nigeria on June 26.
Maradona, a 1986 World Cup winner, played against Nigeria in the 1994 World Cup in USA.
Speaking with Argentina TV station Telesur, the 57-year-old lambasted the coach’s poor tactics.
“If he carries on like this, Sampaoli can’t come back to Argentina,” Maradona said. “There is serious trouble ahead because Nigeria have experience, they know how to counter-attack and they know how to score.”
He added, “His (Sampaoli’s) game-plan was a disgrace. Even though the Iceland players average 1.90m in height, we played all our corners into the air. We had no short game.”
A Lionel Messi-less Argentina lost to 4-2 to the Super Eagles in a friendly on November 14, 2017.
Leave a Reply