Very few coaches in the world take charge of a national team without any experience of club management - even less so in such a footballing power as Argentina.

But that is exactly what Jose Pekerman did.

Without a single domestic league match to his name in a club dug-out, he was chosen to succeed Marcelo Bielsa due to his extensive and successful career with the Argentinian national youth teams.

Pekerman keeps a low profile and seldom becomes drawn into any public disputes. Indeed, that might be the key to his great success.

In the 1970s, Pekerman was shining as a midfielder with Argentinos Juniors. He had begun his professional career in 1969 and, in 1975, left Argentina for Colombia to play for Medellin until 1978, the same year Argentina celebrated their first World Cup title.

Pekerman suffered a serious injury that forced him into early retirement at 29. In 1982, he qualified as a coach and has never looked back.

Pekerman was the man behind three World Youth Cup successes in 1995, 1997 and 2001 with Argentina, silencing the critics who questioned his appointment.

Those youth tournaments were so significant for Pekerman that his pets are called Qatar, Malaysia and Argentina, in honour to the three countries where Argentina won those championships.

Now, after 12 years managing teenagers in the national team, plus 11 more at youth level with Argentinos Juniors, Chacarita and Chilean giants Colo Colo, he has the best opportunity to demonstrate that he can conquer the world at senior level too.

"I have plenty of confidence. I hope we can have a great tournament," he said looking ahead to Germany 2006.

"Because of history, we're candidates to win. We've had that responsibility since the moment we took over. The coaching staff and players know our goal is to win the World Cup."

However, he has to be realistic.

"We are concerned this will be a very hard tournament and we'll go step by step," Pekerman added.

Certainly the draw is a tough one for the South Americans, as they share Group C with Holland, Serbia and Montenegro and the Ivory Coast.

Pekerman was the first choice of Argentinian Football Association president Julio Grondona to succeed Bielsa following the latter's resignation, as he was in 1998 when Daniel Passarella quit. On that occasion Pekerman rejected the position, but at the second time of asking he accepted.

Grondona's choice was logical - Pekerman was working as the general co-ordinator of the national teams up to that point and, more importantly, had already coached most of Argentina's current players.

Fabricio Coloccini, German Lux, Walter Samuel, Esteban Cambiasso, Javier Saviola, Gabriel Milito, Maxi Rodriguez, Juan Roman Riquelme, Pablo Aimar... all of them passed through Pekerman's hands some time ago in the youth teams, when they were only teenagers. Almost all of them won the World Youth Championship with Pekerman at some stage too.

Juan Pablo Sorin was another of Pekerman's proteges and was appointed captain, succeeding vastly-experienced defender Roberto Ayala.

That was a big risk for Pekerman to take as soon as he took over, because Ayala had been the national team captain since the reign of Passarella.

But Pekerman explained the reasons, with his characteristic calmness.

"I explained to (Ayala) that he has been absent from the national team for seven months due to an injury, but I also told him that the armband is not necessary for a player to act like a captain."

His formula for success has been always the same.

"We have to think in the player, give him freedom to play football," he said.

"Everybody in Argentina is dreaming of the possibility of seeing Aimar, Riquelme, (Lionel) Messi and all the squad's high-quality players playing like they used to when they were teenagers in their native cities. That means, having fun while touching the ball."

But one of the most important tasks for Pekerman in Germany 2006 will be try to make an unbeaten squad mixing these young excellent players with the more experienced squad members such as Kily Gonzalez, Ayala, Hernan Crespo and Javier Zanetti.

"That's what we have to work hard on from now on. We have some months before the World Cup and we can do it," he continued.

There is no spikiness to Pekerman at all. Whether working as a taxi driver in his native Gualeguay, or now as coach of one of the most powerful football nations in the world, Pekerman will be the same, with that low profile, softly-spoken manner shielding a driven and success-hungry spirit.