In August 2006, West Ham's double-swoop for Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano meant any mention of Argentina and east London would be tied to the duo, but Albiceleste manager Lionel Scaloni can now give them a run for their money.
West Ham 's representation in World Cup finals is the kind of thing fans of the club are well versed in. The trio of Hammers in England's victorious 1966 team might be the headline, but there's also former West Ham man Mascherano in the 2014 final, while goalkeeper Alphonse Areola has traded his place in David Moyes' Europa Conference League line-ups for a spot on the France bench in Qatar on Sunday.
All four of the 2022 semi-finalists had a West Ham link, including Areola for France, summer signing Nayef Aguerd for Morocco and Nikola Vlasic - currently out on loan at Torino - in Croatia's squad. Scaloni is the Argentina link, having spent half a season with West Ham under Alan Pardew, and supporters have mixed memories of the former right-back.
Scaloni spent the majority of his playing career with Deportivo La Coruna, racking up 49 Champions League appearances for the Spanish club and helping them reach the semi-finals in the 2003-04 season. One of his two European goals came that season, in a chaotic 8-3 defeat to Monaco in the group stage, while he featured as Javier Irureta's side were eliminated by Jose Mourinho's Porto.
Depor had fallen off the pace by January 2006, though, while long-serving manager Irureta was no longer at the helm. In came West Ham, in search of cover at right-back after fan favourite Tomas Repka returned to the Czech Republic, and Scaloni was the answer.
"I targeted Lionel because, in my view, he is very similar to Tomas Repka," West Ham boss Pardew said at the time. "He is strong and aggressive and I am sure our fans will enjoy seeing him play."
The manager suggested a permanent move might follow if the loan went well. Instead, though, Scaloni's final game in West Ham colours was one which fans will never forget, and not for the reasons he might have hoped.
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Things started well for Scaloni, with West Ham picking up clean sheets in each of his first three games. The Repka comparisons shone through as well, with three yellow cards in his first four league outings.
One of those games came against Bolton, in a 4-1 defeat which dented West Ham's outside hopes of qualifying for Europe through their league position. The Hammers knocked the Trotters out of the FA Cup just a few days later, though, and Scaloni would also feature in the following round as Pardew's team fought off Manchester City to reach the semi-finals.
Dean Ashton scored West Ham's two goals against City, and had fond memories of Scaloni's time... right up until the cup final against Liverpool. Ashton was on target as the London side led 2-0 and 3-2 against Rafa Benitez's Liverpool going into the final minute, at which point Scaloni put the ball out for an injury to Djibril Cisse and was given it back near his own corner flag.
“Well I mean, he came on loan, he did six months, was a great character, did well for us," Ashton told talkSPORT. "FA Cup final, all he needs to do is smash it back to [Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe] Reina or put it out into the stands. He shanks his clearance, goes back into our box, and [Steven] Gerrard scores.”
Had Gerrard not found the back of Shaka Hislop's net, West Ham fans could have shrugged off the clearance. Had a visibly tired Marlon Harewood not fluffed a chance in extra-time, the same might have applied. Instead, though, Liverpool triumphed on penalties and Scaloni will forever be considered the villain of the piece for some.
West Ham still qualified for Europe, thanks to Liverpool's top-four finish, but they have not reached a cup final since. Scaloni, meanwhile, returned to Spain after joining Argentina for their 2006 World Cup campaign, joining Racing Santander before closing out his career in Serie A with Lazio and Atalanta.
Instead of moving for Scaloni, Pardew turned to Ghanaian right-back John Pantsil in the summer of 2006, but a poor start to the season saw the manager sacked. Alan Curbishley was in the dugout for the January window, bringing in further reinforcements in the form of future club captain Lucas Neill, and the Australian had far greater success in claret and blue.
A month after the cup final, Scaloni was starting for Argentina in their memorable World Cup last-16 victory over Mexico, enjoying a much more productive extra-time period as Maxi Rodriguez scored one of the goals of the tournament in Germany. That run didn't end in glory, or even a final, but he has the chance to set things right in Qatar with Lionel Messi - a team-mate back in 2006 - now captaining the team.
For those associated with West Ham, though, even a World Cup victory might not be able to change their memories of the former right-back. Even now, more than a decade on, he's still the man who helped the Hammers snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
“So many West Ham fans have come up to me over the years and said, ‘Oh my god, that throw in! What was he thinking!?’,” Pardew told The Telegraph. “All this time later and they still bring it up. If only he’d just done something different.”
