Maradona eyes return to management

By FOX Sports Staff

The legendary Argentine's last management stint with Al Wasl ended last July in acrimonious circumstances and he has been taking a step back from the game since, but recent developments could see him return at the helm of a football club by next season.

Maradona's representative in France, Haijoub Youssef, has revealed that the 52-year-old is being considered to be a replacement for the out-going Rene Giard at Montpellier next season.

"This morning Maradona told us that he was ready to negotiate an eventual deal with Montpellier at the behest of the club," Haijoub Youssef, Maradona's representative in France, told RMC Sport.

"We are going to indicate to the club by fax this afternoon that it's okay to enter talks. Just as PSG have Beckham, why can't Montpellier have a trainer of such calibre and such a great image?""

Montpellier owner Louis Niccolin backed Maradona on his Twitter account, saying: "I would like to have Maradona on the bench, just to annoy PSG."

"There's a possibility of me managing Napoli, but there are those lying coaches who come along and say they're going to retire to spend time with their families, and when a big club comes up, they take it," he told Marca.

"Let the youngsters have a go, for Christ's sake! It's a closed loop and there's no way in for the new guys.

"And there are some very capable youngsters, but these old guys, who say they're going to retire and then come back, they won't let us in."

The 52-year-old has also been the subject of reports linking him to Boca Juniors, and he admitted that is also a possibility.

He continued: "That's clearer for me than coaching Napoli. Sometimes I see managers who make changes that benefit the opposing team, and then I look in the mirror and say to myself: 'How can I not be coaching?'"

The ex-Argentina trainer was last in work at United Arab Emirates side Al Wasl but was unceremoniously dismissed from his position, but he claims he was treated unfairly in the Middle East.

He added: "The one who got rid of me there wasn't the Sheikh, but the Sheikh's cousin or something like that. I don't know who he is.

"Now the team is a mess, unfortunately. The guy who forced me out thinks he knows more about football than me. He was competing with me without ever having kicked a ball in his life.

"And also, he got rid of me via a social network. He was very disrespectful towards me. Obviously he hates me or I must have stepped on his toes, because I don't even know him.

"They're doing everything backwards at Al Wasl now. I earned people's respect in Dubai by myself. Nobody gave me anything."