As he walked off the pitch after Argentina's crushing quarter-final World Cup exit, Maradona hinted that it was time for him to quit as national coach. His jubilant welcome home might have made him think twice.
In stark contrast to the frosty reception given to coaches from Brazil and England after their disappointing early exits, Maradona got a hero's welcome despite a 4-0 loss to Germany.
"Hang in there Maradona," Fernandez said last week in a speech to supporters. "No Argentine has given us so much happiness on the football field as Diego Maradona."
During the World Cup, pundits hailed Argentina's attacking style, the majestic dribbling of Lionel Messi and the striking force of Carlos Tevez and Gonzalo Higuain.
It was Maradona who stole the limelight, however, prowling the sidelines in a shiny, grey suit and inspiring hope that he could again propel Argentina to success in football's most coveted trophy, this time as coach.
AFA spokesman Ernesto Cherquis Bialo, who helped to write Maradona's autobiography, said the decision was down to Maradona.
"If Maradona wants to...he will continue. People have unconditional support for Maradona; other coaches who made the same mistake as him (losing in the quarter-finals), have had to resign."
Later on Wednesday, Cherquis Bialo told reporters Maradona would be formally offered to stay on until 2014 and specified there was no "Plan B" in place should the famed player and coach decide not to continue.
"He's dealing with the blow in his own way," the friend said, asking not to be named. "He's always said he wanted to be the team's coach for the rest of his life, but you always have to consider whether it makes sense."
"I wanted him to be champion again because he deserved it," Alberto Blanco, 39, said in front of a giant Maradona inflatable set up in the centre of Buenos Aires,
"I know he's not
