As expected, Maradona and his advisers decided to select a "local" national team consisting of the most talented domestic players. This will enable Maradona to train once week and prepare for the upcoming world qualifiers against Ecuador & Colombia. This shift in strategy proves how serious Maradona and AFA officials are on qualifying for South Africa next summer.

It appears Maradona will play the wonder trio of Messi, Tevez & Aguero against Colombia this Saturday. For one, they were seen playing together in today's practice session at their Ezieza airport training center in Buenos Aires. Another clue is Messi stating to the media that he loves to play along side Aguero & Tevez.

Maradona submitted his much anticipated sqaud list for the next two qualifing games with Venezuela & Bolivia. Two brand new faces on Maradona's list are Federico Vilar, goalie for Atlante of Mexico (32 yrs. old) & Juan Forlín, defender for Boca Juniors.
I hope to have Information profiles for all of these players by next week - So stay tuned.

Here are some interesting team statistics that I have compiled from primary club sites and notable news sources.
Average Height Metric (U.S.)
Entire Team: 179 cm (5ft 9in)
Midfielders: 179 cm (5ft 9in)
Forwards: 173.5 cm (5 ft 7in)
Defenders: 180 cm (5ft 9in)
Goalies: 187 cm (6ft 1in)
Average Age of Team
Entire Team: 26 yrs
Youngest Players
Juan Forlin: 20 yrs
Sergio Aguero: 20 yrs
Oldest Players
Javier Zanetti: 35 yrs
Juan Sebastian Veron: 34 yrs
Birth Place (by Province)
Buenos Aires: 50%
Santa Fe: 40%
Other (Catamarca, Cordoba, Entre Rios): 10%
Current Clubs (by Country)
Argentina: 27%
Italy: 20%
Portugal: 12%
Spain: 23%
UK: 12%
Other (Germany, Mexico): 6%
Current Clubs (by Region)
America: 30%
Europe: 70%
Most Common Zodiac Signs
Aries & Gemini: 42%

After Argentina's historic loss to Bolivia, Maradona will have to re access his strategy & players when playing in high altitude locations. In Bolivia, he completely underestimated the forces of nature and the soccer abilities of the Bolivians. He, however, will soon get a chance to redeem himself when they play Ecuador on June 10th in Quito (2,850 m/9,350 ft) the second highest capital city after La Paz, Bolivia.

Argentina will soon take on Bolivia in Bolivia's high altitude capital city of La Paz at nearly 12,000 feet of altitude. Most International teams never have to subject their teams to these extreme conditions which can cause hypoxia (lack of oxygen) and a multitude of related ailments.

Yesterday's game against Venezuela produced four 1st class goals from Messi, Tevez, Maxi, & Aguero. The line-up that I posted the day before only had one change which was to have Zanetti on Defence. This change demonstrates how determined Maradona was to make this a purely attacking team since Zanetti is known for his ability to hold the ball and switch to an attacking role when necessary.

According to the Argentine media, it appears Maradona is preparing an all-front assault on Venezuela by placing his biggest guns (Messi, Aguero, & Tevez) on the front line. Most practice sessions have included a 3-4-3 formation (see below). Mascherano & Gago will be in charge of circulating the ball & controlling the mid-field which is a crucial element to the Argentine formula.

It appears Maradona will play the wonder trio of Messi, Tevez & Aguero against Colombia this Saturday. For one, they were seen playing together in today's practice session at their Ezieza airport training center in Buenos Aires. Another clue is Messi stating to the media that he loves to play along side Aguero & Tevez.