Tevez in the zone as Argentina up for the cup
The Manchester City star shrugged off Argentina’s poor form in the qualifiers, from which they only scraped into the finals with a 1-0 win over Uruguay amid a storm of criticism.
“This is a World Cup,” said Tevez. “Who can not be motivated when they have this opportunity?
“In the qualifiers, everything was a lot more difficult. I am a lot more focused than four years ago. I feel 10 out of 10 and I’m preparing myself very much for the first game.”
Tevez was supported by defender Martin Demichelis, who claimed that the presence of controversial coach Diego Maradona is a huge positive, not a negative, for his country’s challenge.
Maradona’s time in charge of the Argentina side has been marked by chaos. A six-goal defeat in Bolivia was the low point but a lewd outburst that followed Argentina’s eventual qualification got him banned for the finals draw last December.
Maradona has since claimed he would complete a lap of honour in the nude should Argentina emerge triumphant in Soccer City on July 12, even though there is no real confidence in his coaching skills.
Yet the man widely acknowledged, along with Pele, as one of the two best players of all time remains a hugely charismatic figure.
His emergence from the tunnel at the ABSA Tuks Stadium in Pretoria for a public training session yesterday evening was greeted with cheers louder than those reserved for Lionel Messi.
Sporting some crazy facial hair, he flitted between the main group of players and his goalkeeper without giving the impression of having any tactical involvement and even managed to smoke a cigar as he waved to watching supporters, almost a thousand of whom had been locked out.
But rather than feel uncomfortable that such an unconventional figure should find himself in charge of a group of individuals as talented as any in South Africa, Demichelis is delighted to have the 49-year-old around.
“Of course Maradona helps us,” said the Bayern Munich defender. “He motivates us a lot and takes all the pressure away.
“He is a very important figure for us. He gives us energy and hunger to do well.”
The depth of talent available to Maradona is the envy of most World Cup coaches. So much so that there is a chance Tevez will not make the starting line-up for Saturday’s Group B opener with Nigeria at Ellis Park.
Real Madrid’s Gonzalo Higuain is favourite to partner Messi, although Maradona could also choose Atletico Madrid’s brilliant Sergio Aguero or Diego Milito, whose two goals won the Champions League for Inter Milan last month.
Liverpool’s Javier Mascherano will anchor the midfield, while another Inter star Walter Samuel will partner Demichelis in central defence.
Yet it is reeling off those names that highlights what a shambles Argentina have been under Maradona. To leave it until the final match of qualifying to secure one of five available berths is simply astonishing.
Yet Demichelis feels improvement has already been made. And with more expected over the coming weeks thanks to a pretty kind group stage draw that will see Argentina follow their Nigeria encounter with games against South Korea and Greece, the 30-year-old has spoken of an increasingly confident camp.
“This team has grown in the last few months,” he said. “Most of the criticisms levelled against us in the first place were unfair.
“There is a lot of belief in this squad and there is no doubt we will be one of the best prepared teams to fight for this competition.”
Meanwhile, Carlos Alberto Parreira is adamant his South Africa side are ready for the World Cup after rounding up preparations with a 1-0 win over Denmark.
The win at the Lucas Moripe stadium in Atteridgeville yesterday took Bafana Bafana’s unbeaten run to 12 games under the Brazilian coach.
Parreira said: “I think the team showed that we are ready for the World Cup. They proved it against Denmark. With our preparations, it shows that the path we took was the right one.”
Parreira believes the tournament hosts deserve to be taken seriously.
He said: “We are ready to fight. We respect everybody, but they must also respect us. We will take every game as a final. We will fight in every game.”
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