Maradona is wary of the injury risk his players face against 'rough and ready' Nigeria, in the opening match of Group B.
The Argentine coach is concerned that the physical game that the Nigerians are apt to play could sideline key players ahead of the round of 16 the qualification to which is the objective of the group matches at the World Cup in South Africa.
There was a touch of irony to Maradona's demand, a fact that he appeared completely oblivious of; Maradona himself was the subject of much discussion on what constitutes fair play after his using a hand to score a goal against England in the quarter-finals at the 1986 World Cup.
Maradona said that both teams were aware of each other's game and that Argentina did not expect to play against a rough and tough team when they took on Nigeria in Johannesburg.
In another bit of irony, Maradona's career ended when he failed a drug test during the 1994 world cup in USA, and Nigeria were in the same group as Argentina on that occasion, too.
The Argentine coach went on to say that he wanted real fair play to prevail and that the referees needed to understand what the words fair play mean. Maradona remembered the bruising encounter against Cameroon in 1990. The Africans won the match 1-0, and had two men sent off by the referee on the occasion.
Maradona recalled that his head was nearly kicked off by a Cameroon player in that match, and that another Argentina player Claudio Caniggia was given a yellow card for a relatively "small kick".
He reiterated that the Argentina team wanted good football and fair play, and to enjoy the match. He exhorted anyone that did not want to play clean football to go into the stands. He stated that people wanted to see football and that the Argentina squad wanted people to be able to watch football without "peacefully, without violence".
Maradona also had some advice for Swedish coach Lars Lagerback, who was on a five-month assignment with the Nigerian squad. The Argentina coach opined that it wasn't a good idea to have short-term coaches but that Lagerback should still try to introduce some good elements such as set-pieces".
Maradona who had more than his share of controversy as a player has also been in the news as a coach for reasons he does not relish. He had a running battle with local journalists back home, as Argentina struggled through the qualifiers.
Ahead of Argentina's tournament opener against Nigeria, the Argentina coach admitted he was nervous.
The Argentine coach is concerned that the physical game that the Nigerians are apt to play could sideline key players ahead of the round of 16 the qualification to which is the objective of the group matches at the World Cup in South Africa.
There was a touch of irony to Maradona's demand, a fact that he appeared completely oblivious of; Maradona himself was the subject of much discussion on what constitutes fair play after his using a hand to score a goal against England in the quarter-finals at the 1986 World Cup.Maradona said that both teams were aware of each other's game and that Argentina did not expect to play against a rough and tough team when they took on Nigeria in Johannesburg.
In another bit of irony, Maradona's career ended when he failed a drug test during the 1994 world cup in USA, and Nigeria were in the same group as Argentina on that occasion, too.
The Argentine coach went on to say that he wanted real fair play to prevail and that the referees needed to understand what the words fair play mean. Maradona remembered the bruising encounter against Cameroon in 1990. The Africans won the match 1-0, and had two men sent off by the referee on the occasion.
Maradona recalled that his head was nearly kicked off by a Cameroon player in that match, and that another Argentina player Claudio Caniggia was given a yellow card for a relatively "small kick".
He reiterated that the Argentina team wanted good football and fair play, and to enjoy the match. He exhorted anyone that did not want to play clean football to go into the stands. He stated that people wanted to see football and that the Argentina squad wanted people to be able to watch football without "peacefully, without violence".
Maradona also had some advice for Swedish coach Lars Lagerback, who was on a five-month assignment with the Nigerian squad. The Argentina coach opined that it wasn't a good idea to have short-term coaches but that Lagerback should still try to introduce some good elements such as set-pieces".
Maradona who had more than his share of controversy as a player has also been in the news as a coach for reasons he does not relish. He had a running battle with local journalists back home, as Argentina struggled through the qualifiers.Ahead of Argentina's tournament opener against Nigeria, the Argentina coach admitted he was nervous.
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