Veteran midfielder Juan Sebasitan Veron will be sidelined in Argentina's game against South Korea on Thursday due to a minor leg muscle injury.

"It was a difficult decision to leave Sebastian out because he really wants to play and of course nobody wants to miss out on the World Cup, but we have to deal with the problem of risk," said coach Maradona. "We don't want the injury to get worse, we don't want Veron's World Cup to end."

The 35-years-old Veron, who was replaced by Maxi Rodriguez in the 74th minute of the 1-0 win over Nigeria, suffered an injury to his calf. Although the injury was not serious, Maradona refused to take the risk.

"I really need him, I need Veron. I explained the reason to him and he understood perfectly well that it was the best for the team. If we put Veron in tomorrow and once again he has a problem with his calf, like the second half against Nigeria, then we would lose him for the whole tournament," said Maradona.

"We'll just let Veron rest and recover and we hope he can play against Greece, and if not that then another match."

Maradona also hinted that Maxi Rodriguez would replaced Veron to start for Argentina tomorrow.

"We all know that if we lost Veron tomorrow the team is not going to be the same. Although we may be losing a very important player I think Maxi Rodriguez is going to do a wonderful job," added the legendary Maradona.