Bolivia’s Sweetest Glory
Well after a very long break from this site its nice to be back and like the world of football is always spinning with out stop I see I have much to catch up to. One of the events that left me in awe was that of the result between Argentina and Bolivia, where I would have never imagined such a scandalous 6-1 defeat of Maradona’s Argentina. I checked every sports site imaginable to see whether this was a mistake or some sort of April fool’s joke. To my surprise my eyes were not deceiving me and Argentina had been humiliated by 9th place Bolivia.
It was the little guy versus the intimidating giant. A situation in which the Bolivians are quite use to and some even see it as though a curse the Bolivians have accepted. However, the roles were switched this past Wednesday in La Paz when for once the Bolivians were the giants and Argentina were the little guy receiving the abuse. They played above the clouds close to heaven and surprised every corner of the world with their football. Argentina never had a response to Bolivia’s game and only were spectators on the field as they watched the goals slip right in. One after the other and it seemed as though the humiliation was never ending. Botero and Torrico were cold killers on the field which held no mercy to the stars of Argentina, where not even Messi was able to shine. A historic moment? Without a doubt yes, but more importantly it was a beautiful moment for Bolivia and their football.
It can be said that Bolivia played with an ally on their side: the intense altitude of La Paz. As everyone might be well familiar this has been a controversial topic in which FIFA has tried to ban the use of La Paz claiming that it is dangerous to play at such heights. There is no question in my mind that playing at those levels did influence in some way Argentina performed, but a 6-1 result is inexcusable for the Albiceleste. Bolivia were superior and no one should use the altitude as an excuse. Maradona knows that it is not an excuse for he played in the same field a bit over a year ago and supported Bolivian President Evo Morales in favor of playing football at those heights. Maybe he has changed his mind.
