Behind the trend of underachievement, of course, there are specific reasons for the failure at each World Cup. In 1994, Argentina never recovered from the shock of Diego Maradona’s positive drug test. In 1998, they were beaten in a superb quarter-final by Holland and Dennis Bergkamp’s majestic goal. In 2002, under Marcelo Bielsa, they went out in the group stage despite having won more corners and having more shots than anybody else. In 2010, a richly talented forward line was squandered by the scattergun management of Maradona.
It is 2006 that really haunts Argentina, though. By then Pékerman had replaced Bielsa as coach of the senior team and Tocalli, while running the Under-20 side, was one of his assistants. Argentina were superb in the group stage, putting six past Serbia-Montenegro, including the fabled 23-pass move finished off by Esteban Cambiasso. In the last 16 they beat Mexico – the only side they have beaten in knockout games at World Cups since 1990 without recourse to penalties – thanks to Maxi Rodríguez’s brilliant volley in extra-time. In the quarter-final, they faced Germany and led 1-0 with 18 minutes remaining when Pékerman took off Juan Román Riquelme and replaced him with Cambiasso. For many, it was the moment at which Pékerman lost his nerve and lost the World Cup.
Tocalli, though, insists it was the injuries that undid them. A minute before Riquelme was withdrawn the goalkeeper, Roberto Abbondanzieri, was forced off for Leo Franco. Seven minutes later, Pékerman also had to replace the injured Hernan Crespo. With Lionel Messi, Pablo Aimar and Javier Saviola on the bench, Pékerman turned to Julio Cruz, a tall and awkward striker.
“We knew Riquelme so well, we’d had him since he was 14, when he was a No5,” said Tocalli. “We knew that if he lost three consecutive passes it was because either he was tired or had another problem. We were winning 1-0 and we were seeing that he was losing many balls, that he didn’t move as much and that his passes weren’t deep. We didn’t see the spark, he seemed tired.
“We had Cambiasso on the bench, a good ball-winner but also very technical when it came to passing the ball. So winning 1-0, we said, Cambiasso for Riquelme, we keep playing football but with more ball-winning. The same with Cruz. Why Cruz and not Messi? Because we felt that Germany were lethal in the air and we had to balance that, we thought that the only way for them to score was with headers from set-pieces. And they ended up scoring with a header but with a 40-metre long ball: nobody could have thought that.”
A minute after Cruz came on, Tim Borowski flicked on Michael Ballack’s cross and Miroslav Klose headed in at the back post. Germany went on to win on penalties and amid rumours of splits within the camp, Pékerman took the blame. Yet given that he had correctly identified the German threat and had taken measures to combat it, it could be argued he was simply unlucky.
And that, perhaps, is a truth of the World Cup. It is not a league. It is not played every year. Even the very best players rarely get more than two or three tournaments at their very peak. Argentina’s great generation has lasted longer than most but still, this is only its fifth tournament, and that means there is plenty of scope for luck to intervene.
At least this time they have a coach who is not simply trying to ram every gifted attacking player in the squad into his side. Alejandro Sabella, though, in a sense is still reaping the harvest of Maradona’s reign – and the subsequent chaos of Sergio Batista’s time in charge, when Argentina spluttered to a quarter-final exit in a home Copa América. Expectation is magnified because the recognition has dawned that the flow of talent may not go on for ever and that there is a need to take advantage now.
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