Tuesday's statement from AFA was its first in writing since
former national coach Diego Maradona charged last week in a TV interview that
Argentine players were given “speedy coffee” to perform better, and that AFA
president Julio Grondona did away with doping controls for the matches.
The statement did not address Maradona's key charge about
stimulants being offered.
In a statement titled “The honor of everyone is saved,” AFA
said doping tests at the time were required only during the World Cup itself.
It said all Argentines involved followed the rules “to the letter of the law.”
Maradona and Grondona have been feuding publicly since last year's World Cup,
when Grondona declined to renew Maradona's contract as national coach. It was
Grondona who hired Maradona, despite his lack of coaching experience when he
took the job.
The statement did not mention Maradona.
Grondona acknowledged last week there were no doping
controls, partly to protect some players.
“A small personal controversy has been generated in recent
days, when an ex-player believed that with his inexact words and bad intentions
he could damage - or attempt to damage - the dramatic qualification against
Australia.” Grondona said last week there was an agreement with Australia to
prevent drug testing. However, Ian Holmes, who was the Australia federation
chief in 1993, has said there was no such agreement.
Argentina drew the first match in Sydney 1-1 and won the
return 1-0 in Buenos Aires to secure a berth in the 1994 tournament.
At the 1994 World Cup in the United States, Maradona was
suspended for testing positive for stimulants after a first-round match against
Nigeria. FIFA subsequently suspended him for 15 months.
Grondona is in Zurich for Wednesday's FIFA presidential
election, which has been overshadowed by bribery allegations against two
executive committee members - Jack Warner and Mohamed bin Hammam.
Grondona, 79, has been an executive committee member since
1988 and is listed as a senior vice president. He is the only one of eight FIFA
vice presidents to carry that title.
Grondona is also the chairman of FIFA's finance committee.
Warner
and bin Hamman are also members.
