A brittleness in El Diego's men exposed

ROUND OF 16: ARGENTINA 3 MEXICO 1:THE HAPPY general marches on, stogie in mouth, his grey beard and his team's results bestowing an unlikely gravitas on him. El Diego is yomping blithely through this crazy World Cup terrain as his gorgeous team appear to make it up as they go along.

Who cares? It’s fun.

Poor Mexico. They cared. With their cheerfully optimistic fans and nice, old-fashioned style and lovely, jaunty anthem they are perfect guests. They bring something colourful and loveable to every World Cup. And always they go home hurting. Last night, though, their demise was predictable. Argentina were doing the hurting.

And hurt it did. Argentina’s opening goal, scored by Carlos Tevez, involved a clear offside and over a minute of protest from the Mexicans. A second goal – a gift from the Mexicans themselves this time – should have made it all irrelevant, but the bad taste lingered for Mexico. The sides went into the break squabbling with the officials and with each other.

Mexico will go home with regrets. Ironically, in that crazy first half they played some of the better football, looking more organised than the Argentinians who appeared to be improvising a lot of the time. The first goal, however, caused them to drop their heads and they stayed that way until Higuain scored his side’s second. By then it was too late.

There was a cool winter wind whipping around Soccer City when the vuvuzelas greeted Maradona and his side, with El Diego looking like a dementedly happy South American general leading his men hither and tither. He grew more animated, though, as Mexico’s confidence grew.

Contrary to expectation, Argentina have looked blithely happy here in South Africa. No tantrums. No Diego implosions. Yet their happy demeanour had almost vanished after 10 minutes. Ironically their troubles began just after Lionel Messi had shown his business card with a run straight at the goal before being forced wide.

The Mexicans swept the ball downfield and Salcido thumped a shot from 25 yards which came back off the crossbar. Within seconds they had created an equally wonderful chance. Guardado came steaming down the left wing and drove a lovely daisycutter just past the far post. The wonderstuff. And it was coming from Mexico.

If Mexico would have their little bag of grievances by half-time, so too had Argentina. Hard tackles on Messi, Tevez and Heinze enraged them.

Still, sailing close to the wind is no crime and Mexico had more in their pockets than hatchets. Hernandez, who already looks a good buy for Alex Ferguson, was adventurous as he scampered around for the first 20 minutes before becoming a victim of Mexico’s general deflation.

That process began on 26 minutes when Messi, working like a dog as ever, scrambled a ball through from midfield. Tevez, just as industrious, was blocked by Perez. The ball bounced back to, of all people, Messi, who popped it up onto the head of Tevez who nodded it home. Soccer City almost sank beneath the delirium and the chaos.

As Argentina celebrated Mexico as a nation rose as one in protest. Tevez had clearly been offside for the return ball. The Italian referee Roberto Rosetti contributed to the mayhem by heading out to the wing for a chat with his linesman before declaring the goal stood.

The Mexicans hadn’t begun to calm down when on 32 minutes Argentina scored again. Higuain pounced on a terrible mistake from Osorio, took it around the goalie and slotted his fourth goal of the tournament. Diego hopped about like a demented general on a smoke-filled battlefield.

Hernandez came back into things as his compatriots decided that all was not lost, and he was part of Mexico’s best move late in the first half. Salcido sent in another lovely curling cross. Hernandez flew in to get a poke on it. It was a chance which could have gone anywhere but the ball flew straight to Romero, the Argentine goalie.

To the break then with some scuffling along the way and a two-goal margin to be considered by both sides.

Thankfully for the sanity of a nation there was no luck or controversy about the third Argentina goal six minutes into the second half. Tevez, taking a pass from Di Maris on the left, bobbled the ball against the ankle of one of two central defenders in front of him. It flew to his right and he followed up from 35 yards with a sublime shot which curled into the top corner.

With 20 minutes left Maradona decided it was time for the hugs and the claps and withdrew Tevez to a huge round of applause from the 84,377 attendance and a big hug from the boss. Juan Sebastien Veron strolled into the action.

If it was complacency, Mexico were soon exploiting it. Franco, a second-half sub, had a lovely header swept off the line by Heinze in the 70th minute. Gasp! There was better to come.

Hernandez, with his back to the goal outside the area, took one touch and turned beautifully, leaving the flowing mane of Di Michelis chasing after as he scampered into the box and fired high into the corner.

A wonderful goal which confirmed Mexico in their belief that they were good enough. Sadly, they hadn’t time enough. But they exposed a brittleness in Argentina which will be studied with interest by the other big fish.

For the closing 20 minutes Mexico virtually withheld the ball from the Argentinians. Their finishing was of a lesser calibre to their possession play, but even Argentina can’t score without the ball. The sub Bareira and the ever-impressive Salcido carved out chances, but Argentina were already thinking of Germany and the quarter-finals.

Diego, the little general who lives it large, was already getting ready to flame another stout Cuban by the time Messi was denied by a wonderful Perez save in injury time.

Pity. The grace note of a Messi goal was all that the evening lacked in terms of perfection.