ARGENTINA COACH:Jose Pekerman

Jose Pekerman has been Argentina's coach since September, 2004, when he replaced the quirky Marcelo Bielsa, who suddenly stepped down after guiding Argentina's Under-23 team to its very first Olympic gold medal at the Summer Games in Athens.

Pekerman, 56, certainly paid his dues, although, incredibly, he has never directed a first division team. But he guided the Argentines into the World Cup. "I thank God for having given me the enlightenment to select this man," Argentine Football Association president Julio Grondona told FIFA Magazine. He directed the Under-20 team to three World Youth Cup victories. In fact, he turned down an offer to coach the National Team in 1998, claiming he did not have enough experience. He was named team manager instead. His philosophy coaching youth teams was a simple one: "You have to go back to the roots, think about the player, give him more freedom," he told FIFA Magazine.

As a player, Pekerman played with Argentinos Juniors and coached the Colo Colo youth team (Chile). Like Bielsa, Pekerman has been known to walk to a different drummer. For a while earlier in his career, Pekerman dropped out of soccer and scrambled just to make ends meet, whether it was taking jobs as a taxi driver, barman or as assistant in a pharmacy. "My thoughts are not guided by money," he was quoted by FIFA Magazine. "There are more important things than that." Pekerman was the only coach who failed to attend the 2006 World Cup draw, missing the event due to the death of his father and a hand injury, a FIFA spokesman said.