Out of Argentina’s three successes at the FIFA World Cup (78-86-22), it’s easy to argue that the trophy lifted in 1986 is the most emblematic. 

The crowning achievement of Diego Maradona’s career was a moment of nationwide healing, after the bloody regime of the 1976 coup, the tragedy of the Malvinas war and the growing pains of the newborn democracy.

However, it was also a moment of vindication for Maradona himself and Carlos Salvador Bilardo, the head coach.

With the victory turning 40 this year, and the World Cup returning — at least partially — to Mexico, we decided to look back on how this historic achievement came to be.

Bilardo had joined the Albiceleste in 1983, with the team in the midst of a crisis after the departure of former coach César Luis Menotti.

Menotti’s stint at the helm of Argentina was revolutionary, reconfiguring the workings and perception of the squad within national football, before leading it to success in the 1978 World Cup.

However, four years later Argentina was eliminated in the second round after losing to the two title favorites, Italy and Brazil, and the coach departed soon after.

Moving from Menotti’s idealistic, near-poetic views on football to Bilardo’s pragmatic, win-at-all-costs mentality was a tectonic shift for Argentina, and a controversial one at that.

The press had long labeled Bilardo — who was coming off a 1982 First Division title with Estudiantes — and his mentor Osvaldo Zubeldía as “anti-football” coaches, who focused on the defensive side of things and weren’t shy about vying on the margin of the rules, or perhaps even a little bit on the other side of them.

Biladon’s decision to hand over the captain’s armband to Diego Maradona, replacing the beloved leader of the ’78 team, Daniel Passarella, was also criticized in the press.

After debuting with a 2-2 tie in a friendly game against Chile, the press came out swinging, criticizing Bilardo’s “mechanical” team’s “structured movements,” claiming the team “hadn’t seduced the fans.” Menotti further fueled the debate from the sidelines, claiming that some of the players “had lost some prestige” after the game.

Ousted in the first round of the 1983 Copa América, it set the stage for a stormy World Cup Qualifiers in 1985.

Despite a win in the........

© Buenos Aires Herald