May 28, 2002

Argentina legend Diego Maradona has attacked Japanese authorities who have dashed his hopes of attending the World Cup finals.

The former Argentina skipper was denied a visa to travel to Japan to watch the team because of his past associations with drugs.

But Maradona, who captained his country to World Cup success in 1986, spoke out on US cable TV station Fox Sports against the decision.

"I did not kill anybody and I respect Japanese laws," he said.

"I did not throw any nuclear bombs at them. If they want to safeguard their country, the Japanese would not have allowed any of the United States players in."

Maradona had a long wait before finally being notified that his visa had been turned down, although he has been granted permission to enter South Korea.

"I requested the visa six months ago but I was refused and that is extremely cruel," he said.

"However, my conscience is clear because I did not do anything wrong."

Divided loyalties

The former player, now 41, was sent home from the 1994 World Cup after failing a drug test.

According to Japanese reports, the issue of a special visa permit for Maradona led to a row between the Foreign Ministry, which was in favour of a visa, and the Interior Ministry, which rejected it.

Maradona will now be unable to watch his national side, who are one of the favourites for the finals.

Argentina start their World Cup campaign against Nigeria on 2 June in Ibaraki.

It has been a bad World Cup countdown for the former Argentina star.

On Monday, Fifa put a stop to Argentina's plans to "retire" the number 10 shirt in his honour.

BBC Sport Online