Diego Maradona, as impulsive as a child but with a street wisdom beyond his years, yesterday revealed the method in his madness.

Another confessional ­performance, in an ­underground garage at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, made of mockery of his denial that he is the star of this World Cup.

It was chaotic, claustrophobic, captivating from the ­moment he hurdled a crash barrier and clambered over reporters to embrace ­Salvatore Bagni, a Napoli team-mate when they won Serie A in 1987.

Maradona relished his “fight for history”, and branded former Argentina goalkeeper Ricardo La Volpe “a traitor” for daring to wish for a Mexico win against his team in ­Johannesburg tonight.

The former cocaine addict, and serial cheat, spoke ­tenderly of passing on life ­lessons to “my boys” and raged against European clubs for exploiting South American prodigies as young as 15.

He attacked the Argentine press corps for “massacring” his players, but insisted that, on the verge of his 50th ­birthday, he no longer held grudges.

He could have fooled me. Maradona may reject ­suggestions Argentina are favourites, but he dismissed Spain as underachievers.

Each kiss he plants on his players' cheeks, every spat with such football deities as Pele and Platini, emphasises the potency of the human chemistry.

Maradona set the tone by announcing, with a smile as bright as his diamond-studded earrings: “People said we were a disaster, the worst team they had ever seen.

“Now they are saying we are excellent, great, beautiful. We have the same players so you don't have to believe everybody.

“You must carry on doing what you want to do, have the same thoughts and ideas. We need to fight for history.

“When the road becomes short and narrow, this is when history begins. I am sure my players understand my ­message.

“You don't really have star coaches at the World Cup. Mourinho or Guardiola, yes, they are stars. But here it is the players who make the difference. They decide how we fare as coaches. We are more guides than anything else.

“ I may have an advantage or two over other people because I can transmit every moment, each emotion, from the World Cup.

“I played in Spain in 1982. Then we won in 1986. In 1990 they said we were dead and we came back. I went through all of that.”

He failed to mention 1994, when he was kicked out of the finals in the USA after testing positive for ephedrine, but we forgave him his indulgence.

“I’ve seen it all. I am giving back all my experience with my heart and soul. I am saying to my boys, ‘This is how it was for me’.

“I tell them the real facts. When you win, don’t go all the way. It is all about working and getting deep into football.

“I am grown up. I am 50 years old on October 30. I don’t hold grudges. People who know me know who I am.

“But what makes me mad is when people lack respect. There are many players today who should be considered Gods. They have been slaughtered by the press.

“Apologise to these ­players, for massacring them. It wouldn’t mean being naked. It is just a matter of being noble.

“We must make our kids dream of playing in Europe, but we should get them ready properly, not grab a child of 15 who has no idea what is required. That is stealing money.

“Almost everybody said I shouldn’t be doing this job. But when my children told me they loved what I was doing, that was my reward.

“We had a lot of tough matches. We needed to change many things. We were nobodies.

“We have fulfilled our duty to win our group and from now on, we start building physically, and mentally.

“Tread firmly. Then you go all the way to the final.”

At England's expense?