Football legend Diego Maradona believes that Argentina have what it takes to beat Germany in their upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup final on Sunday at the Estadio Maracana in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.
Maradona, who led Argentina to a World Cup title in 1986, said that Germany look unbeatable after their scintillating 7-1 win against Brazil in the semis, but he insisted that beating the German side is not an impossible task.
"Germany is not impossible, Argentina can do it." Maradona said via ESPN. "Against Algeria, we saw one Germany, and against Brazil [we saw] another. But we all expected it to be Brazil. Argentina are going in strengthened. Once again Argentine football is back at the top."
Argentina booked a spot in the 2014 World Cup final after escaping with a victory on penalties, 4-2, against Netherlands in their semis match on Wednesday.
Maradona was not too thrilled with Argentina's performance, but he praised the squad for playing great defense, not allowing Netherlands' main attackers - Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder - to score.
The Argentine legend singled out defender Javier Mascherano, who was all over the place on Wednesday night and had an important block against Robben in the final minutes of normal time.
"'Masche' was exceptional," Maradona said of Mascherano. "When I said it was 'Masche' and 10 more, they laughed. Today they could not laugh. The example on the pitch is Mascherano. Everyone follows his rhythm. So they cannot score against us."
Mascherano, who was named man of the match against Netherlands, vowed that Argentina will treat the final showdown as the game of their lives and he is hoping that they can bring the prestigious title home.
"We know that on Sunday we will play the game of our lives," Mascherano said. "We hope to crown this with the trophy, but either way I feel so proud of this squad. It is a dream for all of us, to return Argentina to this possibility. I am happy for my teammates -- they are all phenomenon."
