After scoring two contrasting goals in the 2–1 quarter-final win against England, his legend was cemented. The majesty of his second goal and the notoriety of his first led to the French newspaper L’Équipe describing Maradona as “half-angel, half-devil”. This match was played with the background of the Falklands War between Argentina and the United Kingdom. Replays showed that the first goal was scored by striking the ball with his hand.
Maradona was buried Thursday having spent the day lying in state at the Casa Rosada, Argentina’s presidential palace. Crowds began lining up at dawn to see his body, some of them becoming unruly when police tried to end the 12-hour visiting period ahead of the wake. Fans threw bottles and rocks, and riot officers responded with rubber bullets, gas and water cannons. Come back often as we will continue to update this page with the juicy dating news, rumors, and gossip.
By then his career his cocaine addiction had taken hold and he was banned for 15 months in 1991 after testing positive for the drug. He captained his country again in the United States in 1994, but was sent home after failing a drugs test for ephedrine. When they returned to their base the players held hands and took a lap of honour around the training ground. Victory over England had left the Argentines feeling indestructible and the deadlock was broken on 51 minutes. A through ball from Jorge Burruchaga and a delightful lifted finish from the outside of Maradona’s left foot over the head of the advancing Belgian keeper Jean-Marie Pfaff set them on their way.
Then, they all poured onto the street to inaugurate a new street sign with Maradona’s name. The club organised a barbecue and party on October 30 to mark Maradona’s birthday, drawing musicians, artists, relatives and former teammates to the clubhouse, which is decorated with images of Maradona. Now a Canadian citizen, Meet an Inmate he speaks lovingly of his time with Toronto Italia. His voice grows a little emotional when he remembers playing with his older brother. Pasquale Fioccola might have a copy of the game, one player told me, but he’d surely never part with it. I figured I’d take one last shot at the players I’d talked to.
Following the triumphant end to the World Cup, Maradona returned to club football. This was the first time that a team from the south of the country won a league title, and it happened at a time when North-South tensions were at a peak. After finishing the following two seasons as runners-up, Napoli won their second scudetto in 1990.
In 1996, he played in a friendly match alongside his brother Raul for Toronto Italia against the Canadian National Soccer League All-Stars. In 2000, he captained Bayern Munich in a friendly against the German national team in the farewell game of Lothar Matthäus. Maradona was himself given a testimonial match in November 2001, played between an all-star World XI and the Argentina national team.
In Naples, the Stadio San Paolo—officially renamed Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on 4 December 2020—was illuminated at night in honour of Maradona, with numerous fans gathering outside the stadium placing murals and paintings as a tribute. Both Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis and the mayor of Naples Luigi de Magistris expressed their desire to rename their stadium after Maradona, which was unanimously approved by Naples City Council. Prior to Napoli’s Europa League match against Rijeka the day after Maradona’s death, all of the Napoli players wore shirts with “Maradona 10” on the back of them, before observing a minute of silence. Figures in the sport from every continent around the world also paid tribute to him. Celebrities and other sports people outside football also paid tribute to Maradona. On 5 September 2019, Maradona was unveiled as the new head coach of Gimnasia de La Plata, signing a contract until the end of the season.
Maradona was born in Villa Fiorito, a slum on the outskirts of the city of Buenos Aires. He had seven siblings; his father was a factory worker; and his mother stayed home with the children. They lived in a house where when it rained, it rained inside the house. He always told the story of how when he was a kid, his mom was never hungry, and how he realized later in life that his mom didn’t eat because there wasn’t enough food for everyone.
In his life there resides a superman too because if Jesus Christ rose again on the third day, which isn’t easy, Maradona rose again at least three times, which isn’t easy either. His physical strength was comparable to his footballing genius. All of his many excesses were an attack on his sport, his craft, and yet they still did not ruin his extraordinary talent, nor prevent it from being expressed, even though he sometimes played in alarming condition. Today even the ball, the most inclusive, shared of toys, feels alone, inconsolably weeping for the loss of its owner, its master. And those of us who knew him will cry even more for that Diego who, in recent times, had almost disappeared beneath the weight of his legend and his life of excess.
When he was eight years old, he came to Argentinos Juniors for trials. When the coaches saw what he could do with the ball, they asked Maradona to give them his identification card; they simply couldn’t believe that the boy was really that young . Once it became clear that Maradona wasn’t lying, the coaches decided to devote themselves to improving his skills. Diego Maradona was born 30 October 1960 and grew up under poor conditions in Villa Fiorito near Buenos Aires as the fourth child of Tota and Chitori Maradona.
He was treated for hepatitis and effects of alcohol abuse and was released on 11 April, but readmitted two days later. In the following days, there were constant rumours about his health, including three false claims of his death within a month. After being transferred to a psychiatric clinic specializing in alcohol-related problems, Maradona was discharged on 7 May.