Maradona would not be mesmerizing us with his amazing football talent. Instead, he will cut a ribbon and make a speech about always having wanted to come to India. He will remind us that his life has been deeply influenced by Mother Teresa and all the drug abuse and the sex with a thousand women during his time in Italy was just a minor aberration. He will also praise the football talent in the country and prophesize future greatness for the Indian team.

And then he will collect his appearance fee and say goodbye forever.

That appearance fee will be money badly spent. A few million dollars were spent on Oliver Kahn’s visit and nothing came out of it. We are a cash-strapped nation and cannot afford to see Maradona in flesh and blood - Even though that would be the greatest story that we could ever tell our grand children.