Argentina take on Venezuela in a South American World Cup qualifier in Buenos Aires tomorrow hoping to improve on third place in the group, one point behind Brazil and seven adrift of leaders Paraguay.

Their last qualifier was the 1-0 defeat to Chile in Santiago which prompted the resignation of Maradona's predecessor Alfio Basile, and the 1986 World Cup-winning captain knows Messi will be key to Argentina's hopes of getting their qualification campaign back on track, with the top four in the pool qualifying automatically for next year's finals in South Africa.

"I want Messi to play with absolute freedom. He is the best player in the world - in Barcelona, in Argentina, in Cameroon or any other part of the planet," the coach said.

He demanded his team take the game to Venezuela, a side traditionally regarded as the minnows of South American football but who have improved dramatically in recent years. They are only three points off fifth place, which would be good enough to secure a qualification play-off against the team finishing fourth in the North and Central American (CONCACAF) section.

"Everything is much more even in today's football and Venezuela have grown," Maradona admitted.

"But they cannot buy history. We have to put all the weight of our history on their shoulders. They might want to come here and attack us, well, that will not be possible."

Messi hopes Maradona opts for a three-man strike force which he experimented with in training this week.

"If we play like we have been practising with the three of us, with Carlitos (Carlos Tevez) and Kun (Sergio Aguero), in attack that would be great for the squad's performance," the Barcelona star said.

"I believe it is more direct, with more chances to attack."

Venezuela coach Cesar Farias believes his side could take advantage of the absence of Argentina playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme, who has quit the international scene after falling out with Maradona.

"Argentina will have a change in their way of playing. Changes like this always take time to work and we could take advantage of that. We have to be brave and take the game to them, being cautious has never worked for us."

Midfielder Jorge Rojas believes the match has been given extra spice because it is Maradona's competitive bow in international management.

"They have the motivation of knowing that they are being coached by one of the best players in the world. I think that this is an additional spice for them," said Rojas.

"In South America every match is hard, but we believe that we are capable of reaching a spot in South Africa. We are aware of our limitations, but we believe we can perform well here."