Nigeria's Kanu. Pics/Suresh Karkera

"When Maradona left the scene, the whole world was thinking about what will happen to football in Argentina. But we got Lio Messi and we all know what he had done. Similarly, Argentine football has a rich tradition and will continue to produce brilliant footballers even after Messi," said a confident Esteban Cambiasso before the official draw of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in India yesterday.