Meet Argentina's home boys

Since his appointment as Argentina coach in November 2008, Diego Maradona has called up 108 players to the national team. Having finally finished his auditions, El Diez has whittled the cast list down to 23, naming six Argentinian league players in his squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, the largest home-based contingent since France 1998.

Making up the sextet are Diego Pozo, Ariel Garce, Clemente Rodriguez, Juan Sebastian Veron, Nicolas Otamendi and Martin Palermo. And as with the other 17 members of the squad, all of whom play in Europe, Maradona has complete confidence in their abilities: “Everyone in Argentina has their list but this is mine and I live and die by my 23 players.”

Maradona’s selection marks a slight change in La Albiceleste’s recent dependence on higher-profile European exports. Marcelo Bielsa’s squad for Korea/Japan 2002 featured only two men who plied their trade at home, while Jose Pekerman named only three such players in his list for Germany 2006, a far cry from the days when Argentina’s FIFA World Cup squads were almost entirely domestic in nature. Indeed, Mario Kempes was the only “foreigner” in the side that triumphed at Argentina 1978, and Carlos Bilardo’s Mexico 1986 champions featured only six overseas-based players.

The sorcerer and the boxer
Of the current six, perhaps the two players with the best chance of making the starting XI for the world finals are the 35-year-old Veron and Otamendi. La Brujita (The Little Witch) will be travelling to South Africa intent on making amends for Argentina’s disastrous showing at Korea/Japan 2002, while Otamendi, who made his first-division debut with Velez Sarsfield in 2008, is a combative defender with a big future ahead of him. The 22-year-old former amateur boxer can expect to make the trip across the Atlantic sooner rather than later if he puts in some punchy displays in South Africa.

Providing strength in depth will be Pozo and Garce, two of the lesser-known members of the squad, both of whom play their club football for Colon under ex-striker Antonio Mohamed, a good friend of Maradona’s. Goalkeeper Pozo has already appeared in two friendlies and will be third-choice custodian at the finals behind Sergio Romero and Mariano Andujar.