SO what lessons did Scotland learn from luring Argentina to Hampden? Well, that Diego Maradona chap is a bit touchy-feely with his players for starters. Some things just don't go down well in Glasgow, where the only kiss allowed between two men is the one where the recipient ends up with a bloodied nose.
A winning start for Argentina's new national coach clearly carried great significance as he planted smackers on substituted players before hugging every one of his charges at full-time. Being Maradona always carries a high volume of public pressure,
and starting with victory will silence some critics back in Buenos Aires. Perhaps that's what prompted the outpouring of emotion.
In truth, he seemed quite comfortable strutting around Hampden Park. A pre-match stroll conducted at leisurely pace involved a check on his players' warm-ups, a quick glance at the Mount Florida goal into which he scored his first international goal 29 years ago, and then back up the tunnel. Oh, and a handshake for each ballboy. The touchy-feelyness again.
When the action began Maradona could recline in comfort, for it was obvious from the off that Argentina were a far more cohesive unit than their hosts. They scored through Maxi Rodriguez after eight minutes and then reduced the match to a virtual training game. Scotland were at times being toyed with by a side ambling around in second gear.
Maradona opted not to experiment too much in his maiden international fixture, whereas his opposite number, George Burley, utilised the match to see several new or recent caps could perform, such as Chris Iwelumo, Lee Miller and Kris Commons. Hearts captain Christophe Berra, who was introduced after 75 minutes for his third cap, explained the steep learning curve he discovered once on the field.
"Their forward movement was superb and all you can do is learn from it," he told the Evening News. "Playing even for a short time against them was a great experience. It's another step in my learning process and hopefully I can use this kind of experience to help me at club level with Hearts.
"I was watching the strikers they had. Tevez likes to drop off into little holes and get turning and running at you. That means you have to stay tight on him. I had a few touches on the ball but most of the time I was defending as they were still coming forward late in the game.
"The Argentines are no walkovers. They are very aggressive. They might be small but they are very strong boys, built like little oxen. If you get too tight to them they will just turn you, a lot like Maradona used to, and they are very quick as well.
"It doesn't matter how significant the game was (for Maradona], it's another feather in my cap because it's an honour for me playing for Scotland. Hopefully I can build on this and keep on improving."
The notion that Scotland contained Argentina better the longer the game progressed is countered by the argument that the visitors weren't overly keen to exert themselves once Rodriguez had rounded off a sweet passing move by beating Allan McGregor.
"For the first 15 minutes it was all Argentina but after that it was a lot more even," opined Berra. "We came into it and had a couple of sniffs at goal. We had pressure, we passed the ball and got it into the box. That caused them some problems and, although Argentina are a top quality team, we didn't look out of our depth.
"Their goal was extremely well worked but we can take positives from the game. I think everyone could see they are a very good team." Nonetheless, Scotland's friendly record at Hampden remains dismal. You would need to trawl the record books back 12 years to find a victory in a non-competitive match at the national stadium. Despite losing to a side currently ranked sixth in the world, Berra believes Scotland have bigger fish to fry and, strictly speaking, he is correct. Their next opponents are Holland, ranked two places higher than Argentina, in a World Cup qualifier next March.
"The media talk about that friendly record but the only games that matter are the qualifiers. Our next game is against Holland and we need to kick on from last night's performance and step up a level.
"Holland and Argentina are both top teams with a lot of world-class players. All the players would have learned things last night but I don't think we were shamed in any way. It was 1-0 but I don't think our keeper had many saves to make. It was a good test for us with Holland in mind."
While Scotland visit Amsterdam, Maradona will welcome Venezuela to Argentina hoping to revive his nation's World Cup hopes after a disappointing start to the South American qualifying phase.
His adoring public believe he can administer the kiss of life. He certainly got plenty of practice last night.
The full article contains 852 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
