Beat Nigeria or Don’t Return Home –Maradona blasts Coach

As Argentina coach at the world cup in South Africa 2010

Argentine football legend and two times world cup winner Diego Amando Maradona has berated the national team coach Jorge Sampaoli over his poor match plan. According to the maestro he warned sampaoli to eaither beat Nigeria in the final group D game and qualify to the next stage of the World Cup or consider relocating and staying away from Argentina.

Jorge Sampoli of Argentina

According to Maradona the coach will not be welcomed home if he fails to qualify from the group.
In their opening group D match Argentina could only manage a scrappy  1-1 draw against lowly rated Iceland on Saturday and are scheduled to trade tackles with group leaders Croatia on Friday before rounding off their group campaign with Nigeria on June 26.

Diego Maradona, a 1986 World Cup winner, played against Nigeria at the 1994 World Cup in USA.

Speaking with Argentina TV station Telesur, the 57-year-old star lambasted the coach for his poor tactics which led to their dismal performance in the game against Iceland.

According to him “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.”

Maradona at the 86 world cup in Mexico

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.”

Maradona became coach of Argentina in November 2008. He was in charge of the team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa before leaving at the end of the tournament.A Lionel Messi-less Argentina lost to 4-2 to the Super Eagles in a friendly on November 14, 2017.