But it was not comeback captain Barry Ferguson, who pulled on the dark blue jersey for the first time in a year, who prompted punters to part with up to £35 per ticket in the midst of a credit crunch.

And, had Diego Maradona the player, rather than Diego Maradona the manager, been the star attraction, you can bet your bottom dollar those other 20,000 seats would have been taken long before Argentina swept into Glasgow in a blaze of publicity.

Former England star Terry Butcher, now part of Scotland's coaching set-up, joked earlier in the week about spotting more Argentina tops north of the border than he had in Mexico upon his return from the World Cup in 1986. Tongue may have been planted firmly in cheek but with a major dose of truth in that claim.

Butcher remains unwilling to forgive that famous 'Hand of God' goal but there was no contrition from Maradona 22 years later. In fact, he stoked the flames further by questioning England's own World Cup triumph in 1966 - and endeared himself even further to an adoring Tartan Army.

There is no question Hampden was a fitting choice to make his debut as national team coach. This was the venue where an 18-year-old Maradona announced his arrival on the international scene to the rest of the world when he bagged his first goal for Argentina in a 3-1 win back in 1979.

Tonight, he stood at the front of the team bus and conducted his own players in some bizarre drum playing as they arrived at the stadium and he soon had the opposition fans dancing to his tune, too. The Scotland supporters were even happy to provide the soundtrack, chanting his name in the opening minutes of the game.

Argentina headed into the match in as much need of a shot in the arm as Scotland, with just one win from their last seven outings in World Cup qualifying leaving them languishing third in the South American zone.

Maradona apparently described the team he inherited from Alfio Basile as a Rolls Royce with a little dust in the engine.

Maxi Rodriguez needed just eight minutes to blow the cobwebs away and put the visitors in the driving seat when he collected a Jonas Gutierrez pass to slot home the only goal of the game.

Maradona barely celebrated. Maybe his mind was on his pregnant daughter who had taken ill and was being comforted by striker Sergio Aguero, who had been given compassionate leave to quit the Argentina camp and return to Spain to be by his girlfriend's bedside.

Or maybe he simply had less to worry about than George Burley, who was by far the more animated of the two managers in their respective technical areas.

Scotland's own ailing World Cup campaign is in need of a jump-start ahead of a daunting visit to Holland in March after stalling with a goalless draw against Norway here last month.

With the Scottish Football Association risking a financial loss to host this glamour tie, there was also the danger that a meeting with one of the best footballing nations in the world could leave the Scots counting the cost on the pitch as well.

A 12-year wait for a friendly win at Hampden continues but there were positives. The return of Ferguson following a 12-month absence from the national team, a debut for Dundee United's Scott Robertson and nothing close to a humiliating thrashing.

Chris Iwelumo even managed to dodge further notoriety by avoiding any embarrassing sitters this time.

But the Wolves striker also failed to pose a threat in front of goal in the 45 minutes he was on the park and, although James McFadden and Lee Miller managed to threaten on a couple of occasions, a lack of cutting edge in front of goal will be a real concern for Amsterdam, especially with no Kris Boyd to call upon.

There was also the strange decision to deploy Kirk Broadfoot out of position in the left-back berth, with Graham Alexander and Jamie McAllister left kicking their heels on the bench.

There was a hug for Burley from Maradona on the final whistle. As for Butcher? Amid all the hero-worshipping, he stuck to his guns with no sign of the Hand of Peace offered by either man.