Amid the happiness and pride that inevitably flows from dispatching the World Champions 4-1 in front of your own fans, in Argentina there will also undoubtedly be an unpleasant question on the lips of many fans: what could we have achieved in South Africa with the cool head and selection policy of Sergio Batista over the fire and emotion that characterised Diego Maradona's short stint as head of 'La Seleccion'?

Of course there are certain qualifiers that must be made. Victory in a one-off friendly match must never be overstated, less so against a Spain team shorn of several key defenders and which had travelled across the Atlantic just days previously. Still, the assurance, cohesion and swagger in this Argentina team - and more than anything the solidity shown in the previously chaotic defence - must call into question the decisions made by 'El Diego' as the Albiceleste fell at the quarter-final stage. Batista's version showed all of the passion and fight which typified the squad before, but crucially added a killer instinct and solid base sorely lacking in the year-and-a-half the Argentine legend was at the helm.
Ironically, nothing summed up the new Argentina like the two returning heavyweights Javier Zanetti and Esteban Cambiasso. Zanetti was flawless in marshalling the right flank, completely nullifying Andres Iniesta over 45 minutes and not putting a foot wrong. The fact that Nicolas Otamendi was left to toil and suffer against Germany when 'El Pupi' was on the sidelines now seems nothing less than footballing suicide.
It was Cambiasso however, who really made the difference to the Albicelestes, not least in the boost he gave to captain Javier Mascherano. Many left the World Cup thinking that the Barca midfielder was not up to scratch, after watching Bastian Schweinsteiger and co. swarm all over him as he tried to anchor an anaemic Argentina midfield.
Ably assisted by the youthful Ever Banega though Mascherano and Cambiasso bossed the game, out-Spaining the Roja in keeping possession and tirelessly harassing such talents as Xabi Alonso and Cesc Fabregas. From being the weakest link in South Africa, the middle of the park suddenly turned into a catalyst for everything good about Argentina's play, meaning that Lionel Messi lost a great deal of the pressure he has carried for so long with his national team and could do what he does best - tormenting teams with the ball at his feet and with space to move.
It would be grossly unfair to write off Maradona as a complete tactical dullard. In the final third of the pitch, it was he that had the guts to play Messi, Carlos Tevez and Gonzalo Higuain as an attacking trident - a move that he lived or died by in South Africa. His faith in the 'People's Player' Tevez especially was admirable with players of such quality as Sergio Aguero and Diego Milito waiting in the wings - and Batista reaped the benefits tonight of a happy and motivated 'Carlitos' as the Manchester City star was irrepressible, scoring one and adding two assists. These three players have the ability, drive and support to storm the world as an attacking unit.
You cannot however, build a luxury skyscraper without strong enough foundations to hold it up. By ignoring such consistently accomplished performers further back in the field as Zanetti, Cambiasso and Banega, that is exactly what happened as Argentina floundered against Germany. Argentina were set up to perfectly imitate the clinical brilliance of Barcelona and Spain in 2010, but shorn of the necessary players through nothing else but ineptitude in selection. The Albiceleste version under Dieguito never amounted to much more than a cheap knock-off.
Batista has proved for years in Argentina that he has a tactical knowledge and nous rivalled by few, and this convincing win has surely confirmed his transition from interim to permanent coach. Amongst the inevitable outbursts of praise and delight bound to emanate from the Argentine press in the next few days however, the question cannot and will not be ignored: why did Julio Grondona go for the mercurial genius of 'El Pelusa' when the down-to-earth tactical sense of 'El Checho' was standing right beside him?