'Diego will be the next coach of the national team,' said Bilardo, who will be director of football of the team.

The 48-year-old Maradonna - who almost singlehandedly led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup trophy - won crucial support last week in his bid to become the next Argentina coach when the man charged with finding Alfio Basile's successor threw his weight behind the World Cup winning skipper.

'I'd like Maradona to be the next coach,' said Mr Noray Nakis, the president of the Argentina Football Association (AFA) selection commission.

Basile resigned a fortnight ago after a World Cup qualifying defeat to Chile which left them in third place after 10 matches, seven points adrift of leaders Paraguay.

Maradona faced competition for the job from Carlos Bianchi, the former coach of Boca Juniors, whom he led to four national league titles, San Lorenzo coach Miguel Angel Russo and Sergio Batista who took the Under-23 squad to Olympic gold in Beijing in August. -- AFP