5 Managers who could lead Lionel Messi to World Cup glory

5. Manuel Pellegrini

Argentinians have, over the past decade or so, made Chile the pre-eminent footballing nation on the South American continent, so there’s no shame in their great neighbours swallowing a bit of pride and appointing a Chilean in charge of their team.

Pelligrini has a great deal of experience and has coached San Lorenzo and River Plate in his illustrious coaching career before of course moving abroad to manage Malaga and later Manchester City to great success. He has great understanding with Pablo Zabaleta, and importantly, Sergio Aguero – whose incredible talent hasn’t really been translated into performances on the international stage.

Besides, Pellegrini is used to managing super egos and moulding a collective around superstars so he shouldn’t have an issue with managing the Argentina dressing room – and the immense personality that dominates it. And I’m not talking about Diego Maradona.

Club honours: @Universidad Catolica – 1x Copa Chile, 1x Copa Interamericana, @LDU Quito – 1x Serie A, @San Lorenzo – 1x Primera Division, 1x Copa Mercusor, @River Plate – 1x Primera Division, @Villareal – 1x UEFA Intertoto Cup, @Manchester City – 1x Premier League, 2x League Cup