Maradona may put on a show of bullishness and that he would still fight for World Cup qualification because Argentina are "still alive."
But it's alarmingly clear that the 1-0 defeat in Asuncion on Wednesday by Paraguay has the Argentina coach on the brink.
Argentina are in dire straits with their final two qualifying matches against Peru at home and Uruguay away.
Argentina are now in fifth place, one point behind fourth-placed Ecuador in the standings. They will face Peru on October 10, and then away to sixth-placed Uruguay three days later.
Maradona has to pull out all the stops to see Argentina clear these two hurdles with victories to avoid a playoff with a CONCACAF team, or worse.
One more defeat and it's the last tango for Maradona - as the national coach of Argentina.
Some journalists are pressing for his removal before further damage is inflicted on the national team.
World Cup Qualifying - CONMEBOL Qualifying Stage
GP W D L GS GC P
Brazil 16 9 6 1 32 9 33
Paraguay 16 9 3 4 22 13 30
Chile 16 8 3 5 27 20 27
Ecuador 16 6 5 5 21 23 23
Argentina 16 6 4 6 20 19 22
Uruguay 16 5 6 5 26 18 21
Venezuela 16 6 3 7 22 27 21
Colombia 16 5 5 6 10 14 20
Bolivia 16 3 3 10 20 34 12
Peru 16 2 4 10 9 32 10
Qualifies for World Cup: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
Playoff with a nation from CONCACAF: 5th
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