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Small is beautiful

IHT, London
Small is sometimes m o n u-mental in the world of soccer. O n Sunday,
people were waking up on all continents to the rhythms of the World Cup whose first finals in Africa are just over a year away, in South Africa in 2010.
From Buenos Aires, we could view the real start of the Diego Maradona era as national team coach. The cameras were trained on Maradona as he went through the emotions from tension to joy to working the crowd during Argentina's emphatic 4-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Venezuela.
Argentina is heading for the finals, Venezuela will probably miss out, yet again. But it was nevertheless compelling because Maradona chose attackers in his own image: Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero and Carlos Tdvez each of them shoulder high to the average international player. All three scored. And all three were hugged and kissed by the similarly small Maradona.
All this before 50,000 people in a stadium called El Monumental.
"I am happy, very happy," declared the coach who once
trod this turf as the greatest player of his time. "Reality is even better than fiction."
Nowhere could have been more emotive on Saturday than Buenos Aires this weekend. The Monumental, the home of River Plate, is a place where you can sense the past all around you.
Pity the Venezuelans who stepped into this cauldron Saturday without a victory ever against Argentina. The pre-match pageantry was of course focused on Diego Armando Maradona, the extraordinary Argentine who had led his country to win the 1986 World Cup and who is charged with emulating Germany's Franz Beckenbauer by winning the trophy as player, then as coach.
If Maradona does that it will be even more remarkable. Five years ago, he almost died of drug induced-heart failure. Now he is portly again, and has regained that strutting demeanor of a man willing to take on the world.
He knows that his popularity in Argentina is on the line? He knows many of his countrymen want Juan Riquelme as playmaker. Riquelme quit the national team after Maradona failed to pick him for two friendly matches in Europe.
Maradona shrugs, and picks a side full of attackers, short on defense, and shorter still on midfield composure.
Before the national
anthems, the latest edition to his family, his grandson Benjamin, was paraded before the crowd.
Benjamin, born in Madrid just over one month ago, is the child of Maradona's daughter Giannina and her fianeg, Aguero, a 20-year-old forward.
Only in Buenos Aires would family be mixed with the serious business of World Cup qualification in quite such a sentimental fashion. Other players, too, led their children onto the field, but the sight of Aguero, cuddling this tiny, black-haired figure clad in Argentina's national shirt, was astonishing.
One day, Ben will see the video of his first "national" team appearance. He will see Granddad Diego standing ramrod stiff and tight-lipped as Argentina struggled for a rhythm and for goals. And then see Maradona leaping and bellowing instructions as he used to do as a player as Messi inspired and each of the forwards scored goals.
The victory was never in doubt. Argentina will, have a tougher time at high altitude in Bolivia on Wednesday. Maradona acknowledges that there is work to do, especially in defense. But he has brought the team home from Europe, where almost all of his men play. And he made it a family occasion in his home city.