[23][24], On 20 October 1976, Maradona made his professional debut for Argentinos Juniors, 10 days before his 16th birthday,[25] vs. Talleres de Córdoba. I hate it with all my strength. His surgeon said that Maradona would follow a liquid diet for three months in order to return to his normal weight. Diego show con Baggio, poi si infuria: "Icardi non-doveva giocare, "29 Years on from the Infamous Argentina-England Match, Maradona holds up his hands in apology", "Maradona visits Tunisian referee who awarded him 1986 "Hand of God" goal", "Maradona wants to hold talks to save Al Wasl job", "Angulo hat-trick helps get Maradona off to winning start in Mexico", "Maradona out as Dorados manager, cites health", "Diego Maradona leaves Gimnasia de La Plata after just two months", "Diego Maradona announces Gimnasia return – two days after quitting", "Maradona returns as Gimnasia head coach, two days after stepping down", "Maradona pledges future to Gimnasia after club elections – Xinhua | English.news.cn", "Maradona keeps Gimnasia gig despite struggles", "Late winner puts Argentina in World Cup finals", "Diego Maradona Tells Press To 'Suck It' After Argentina Triumph Over Uruguay", "Argentina to offer Diego Maradona new four-year deal", "Diego Maradona departs as manager of Argentina", "Diego Maradona Becomes A Grandfather As Sergio Aguero Junior Is Born", Clarin.com – "Había una vez... un elenco para la selección", Clarin.com – "Dalma Maradona: diario de una princesa", “Diego Maradona’s father Don Diego dies aged 87”, "Diego Maradona secretly filmed 'beating' his girlfriend after row over mobile phone", "Tributes to Diego Maradona show how easily violence against women is ignored", "La historia del sobrino de Maradona que juega en River: su polémica llegada al club y su particular parecido con el tío", "Diego Maradona treated by paramedics after appearing to collapse at Argentina vs Nigeria World Cup 2018 game", "The New York Times: SOCCER; Maradona Sentenced", "El éxito que llegó de España La extraña historia de Mi enfermedad, o cuando Fabiana Cantilo resucitó a Andrés Calamaro", "Maradona's gastric bypass inspires obese Colombians", "Diego Maradona blames bizarre World Cup behaviour on white wine binge in VIP box", "Diego Maradona recovering in hospital after operation for internal bleeding", "Beyond soccer, here are some of the political causes, leaders, and movements Diego Maradona supported in his life", "Maradona, football legend, was a champion of Latin America's left", "Maradona and Chávez laugh over 'hand of god' goal on chat show", "Chávez and Maradona Lead Massive Rebuke of Bush", "Image of Maradona wearing the STOP BU卐H shirt", "Ex-soccer star Maradona tells Chavez he hates U.S.", "Football awaits an audience with Italy and Argentina", "Diego Maradona meets Pope Francis in Rome", "Diego Maradona makes a fan of President Ahmadinejad of Iran", "Así bailó Maradona durante el cierre de campaña de Maduro", "Maradona acompañó a Maduro en su cierre de campaña electoral", "Federación México multa a Maradona por dedicar triunfo a Maduro", "Why Diego Maradona will always be Argentina's favourite son", "Diego Maradona sends a 'big hug to the Houses of Parliament' and thanks the Queen", Maradona still owes 37 million euros, taxman says, "Football legend Diego Maradona admitted to hospital with signs of depression", "Argentina great Maradona to have emergency brain surgery", "Diego Maradona discharged from clinic following successful brain surgery", "Conmoción en el country donde murió Maradona: "Lo recibimos como a un vecino más, "Diego Maradona: Footballer laid to rest as Argentina grieves", "Chaos as heartbroken Maradona mourners clash with police at wake", "Diego Maradona funeral cortege heads to cemetery near Buenos Aires", "Diego Maradona laid to rest in private ceremony in Buenos Aires", "Diego Maradona: Argentina legend dies aged 60", "Champions League clubs pay tribute to Maradona with moment of silence", "Copa Libertadores: Conmebol le aplica el luto por Maradona a Boca Juniors", "Boca Juniors' Copa Libertadores game postponed after Maradona's death", "AFC President pays tribute to footballing legend Maradona", "Serie A plans league-wide weekend tribute to Diego Maradona", "Napoli v HNK Rijeka: Hosts pay tribute to Maradona at Stadio San Paolo", "Diego Maradona Was From Another Planet, Says Eto'o", "Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor and Mike Tyson React to Diego Maradona's Demise", "Maradona passes away: Celebrities pay tributes to the legend", "Sports World Pays Tribute to Diego Maradona", "The tribute of the basketball workforce to Diego Maradona", "Stadium near Barasat named after legendary Diego Maradona", "All-New Copa Diego Maradona Logo Launched", "PFF to honour football legend Diego Maradona during PFF Challenge Cup [Geo]", "Maradona's death plunges Lyari into grief [Express Tribune]", "Completely exciting! [105], At the 1994 World Cup in the United States, Maradona played in only two games (both at the Foxboro Stadium near Boston), scoring one goal against Greece, before being sent home after failing a drug test for ephedrine doping. Maradona was more than just a great footballer. The first goal was an unpenalized handling foul known as the "Hand of God", while the second goal followed a 60 m (66 yd) dribble past five England players, voted "Goal of the Century" by FIFA.com voters in 2002. How many players would do that? [108], In his autobiography, Maradona argued that the test result was due to his personal trainer giving him the power drink Rip Fuel. [324] In Rosario, Argentina, locals organized the parody religion of the "Church of Maradona". He was treated for hepatitis and effects of alcohol abuse and was released on 11 April, but readmitted two days later. [107] In the second game, a 2–1 victory over Nigeria which was to be his last game for Argentina, he set up both of his team's goals on free kicks, the second an assist to Caniggia. [261] In the following days, there were constant rumours about his health, including three false claims of his death within a month. "[176] However, although, as Bianchi noted, Maradona was known for making "great plays" and doing "unimaginable" and "incredible things" with the ball during training sessions,[177][178][179] and would even go through periods of rigorous exercise, he was equally known for his limited work-rate in training without the ball, and even gained a degree of infamy during his time in Italy for missing training sessions with Napoli, while he often trained independently instead of with his team. [49] Goldblatt wrote, "The celebrations were tumultuous. [38] In 1983, under coach César Luis Menotti, Barcelona and Maradona won the Copa del Rey (Spain's annual national cup competition), beating Real Madrid, and the Spanish Super Cup, beating Athletic Bilbao. "[276] By December 2008, however, Maradona had adopted a more pro-U.S. attitude and expressed admiration for Bush's successor, then-President-elect Barack Obama, for whom he had great expectations. [13] After two months in charge he left the club on 19 November. [49] The following season, the team's prolific attacking trio, formed by Maradona, Bruno Giordano, and Careca, was later dubbed the "Ma-Gi-Ca" (magical) front-line. In 2017, Maradona became the coach of Fujairah before leaving at the end of the season. The Italian match is renowned for Maradona being aggressively man-marked by Claudio Gentile, as Italy beat Argentina at the Sarrià Stadium in Barcelona, 2–1. [263] On 8 May 2007, Maradona appeared on Argentine television and stated that he had quit drinking and had not used drugs in two and a half years. There's still so much to be said, but for now, may God give strength to his relatives. '"[49] Murals of Maradona were painted on the city's ancient buildings, and newborn children were named in his honour. New Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel … Maradona il più forte di sempre, ma a Van Basten è stato ancora più difficile prendere la palla", "Ibrahimovic: Maradona's off-field antics don't matter", "Pelè è più forte di Maradona, Zidane 3°, Baggio 9°: i migliori 10 secondo la Fifa", "The World Cup's top 100 footballers: by nationality, goals scored and votes", “Ranked! He made the nutmeg and when I turned around, he was far away from me". [326] In 2010 he appeared in a commercial for French fashion house Louis Vuitton, indulging in a game of table football with fellow World Cup winners Pelé and Zinedine Zidane. On 15 August 2005, Maradona made his debut as host of a talk-variety show on Argentine television, La Noche del 10 ("The Night of the no. Watch breaking news videos, viral videos and original video clips on CNN.com. [231][232] After Argentina's qualification, Maradona used abusive language at the live post-game press conference, telling members of the media to "suck it and keep on sucking it". He was a leader, taking his teams to the very top, but also many lows in his career. Maradona played in four FIFA World Cups, including the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, where he captained Argentina and led them to victory over West Germany in the final, and won the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player. "[190] His former club and international teammate, Franco Baresi, stated when he was asked who was his greatest opponent: "Maradona; when he was on form, there was almost no way of stopping him,"[60] while fellow former Italy defender Giuseppe Bergomi described Maradona as the greatest player of all time in 2018. Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images [212], In May 2006, Maradona agreed to take part in UK's Soccer Aid (a program to raise money for UNICEF). [44] He aggressively got up, stood inches from Sola's face and the two exchanged words. [252][253], Maradona's great-nephew Hernán López is also a professional footballer. p. 227. [55][56] Despite primarily playing in a creative role as an attacking midfielder, Maradona was the top scorer in Serie A in 1987–88 with 15 goals, and was the all-time leading goalscorer for Napoli, with 115 goals,[57] until his record was broken by Marek Hamšík in 2017. [69] In 1993, he played for Newell's Old Boys and in 1995 returned to Boca Juniors for a two-year stint. Who is this footballing magician, this, "I have lost a great friend and the world has lost a legend. During his two injury-hit seasons at Barcelona, Maradona scored 38 goals in 58 games. Diego Maradona One of the most gifted footballers of all-time, Maradona was a fearsome dribbler who could make any defender look lost. Concerning the idolatry that exists in his country, former teammate Jorge Valdano said, "At the time that Maradona retired from active football, he left Argentina traumatized. [258], Maradona had a tendency to put on weight and suffered increasingly from obesity, at one point weighing 280 lb (130 kg). He would help him psychologically, talk to him about philosophy, and things like that. With two matches remaining in the qualification tournament for the 2010 World Cup, Argentina was in fifth place and faced the possibility of failing to qualify, but victory in the last two matches secured qualification for the finals. [223], 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. He lit up the 1986 World Cup with an astonishing run and finish against England, dribbling around almost half of the opposition, earning him FIFA's Goal of … [267] He supported the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and condemned Israel's military strikes on Gaza during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, saying: "What Israel is doing to the Palestinians is shameful. In addition to his creative abilities, he possessed an eye for goal and was known to be a free kick specialist. [42] The Tartan Army sing a version of the Hokey Cokey in honour of the Hand of God goal against England. "[146], —Lionel Messi, the player most closely identified with the "New Maradona" label[77], One of Maradona's trademark moves was dribbling full-speed on the right wing, and on reaching the opponent's goal line, delivering accurate passes to his teammates. He then coached Dubai-based club Al Wasl in the UAE Pro-League for the 2011–12 season. "[43], Since 1986, it has been common for Argentines abroad to hear Maradona's name as a token of recognition, even in remote places. [9] In September 2018 he was appointed manager of Mexican second division side Dorados. The American newspaper Houston Chronicle wrote of Maradona: To understand the gargantuan shadow Maradona casts over his football-mad homeland, one has to conjure up the athleticism of Michael Jordan, the power of Babe Ruth – and the human fallibility of Mike Tyson. [109] His failed drug test at the 1994 World Cup signalled the end of his international career, which lasted 17 years and yielded 34 goals from 91 games, including one winner's medal and one runners-up medal in the World Cup. His claim was that the U.S. version, unlike the Argentine one, contained the chemical and that, having run out of his Argentine dosage, his trainer unwittingly bought the U.S. formula. On 22 March 2010, Maradona was chosen number 1 in 'The Greatest 10 World Cup Players of All Time' by the London-based newspaper The Times. Paul Greengrass and Toby Follett report", "Camorra, arrestato il boss amico di Maradona", "At his best, Diego Maradona can be as graceful as Michael Jordan. [81], Maradona captained the Argentine national team to victory in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, winning the final in Mexico City against West Germany. [177][180][181][182], In a 2019 documentary film on his life, Diego Maradona, Maradona confessed that his weekly regime consisted of "playing a game on Sunday, going out until Wednesday, then hitting the gym on Thursday." [169][171][172][173] Known as one of the most skilful players in the game, he is regarded as one the greatest dribblers[99][126][132][133] and free kick takers in history. Not that I'd want to anyway. The world was turned upside down. [206] Argentinos Juniors named its stadium after Maradona on 26 December 2003. [74] On 2 June 1979, Maradona scored his first senior international goal in a 3–1 win against Scotland at Hampden Park. [39][41], Due to illness and injury as well as controversial incidents on the field, Maradona had a difficult tenure in Barcelona.