A genius on the pitch, a madman on the side



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Diego Armando Maradona died of a heart attack a few weeks after his 60th birthday. Become world champion with Argentina in 1986 and a legend at SSC Napoli.

Diego Armando Maradona was born on 30 October 1960 in Villa Fiorito, a settlement on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, the son of a worker. The talent of the first division club Argentinos Juniors is recognized from the start; According to tradition, Maradona would entertain the audience like a twelve-year-old ball boy during the break with playful tunes.

At the age of 15, Maradona made his debut in the Argentine top division. Local media proclaim him the new Pele and compare him to the Brazilian prodigy player. Self-confidence is already there then. He tells journalists: “I’m Maradona, it’s not a new thing. I just want to be Maradona. ”

In February 1981 Boca Juniors paid Argentinos Juniors the equivalent of three million D marks for him. Maradona celebrated the world title in 1982 with Argentina’s most famous club. He scored 28 goals in 40 games for Boca Juniors.


On February 27, 1977, Maradona made his debut in a 5-1 win over Hungary at the age of 16 in the Argentine national team. Our picture shows Maradona in 1980 at “Mundalito”, a tournament known as the “Mini World Cup”. In addition to Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany also participated.

On 7 September 1979, Maradona led Argentina as a captain at the junior world title. In the final in Tokyo, the Soviet Union is defeated 3-1. The coach, César Luis Menotti, had not named him to the World Cup senior national team a year earlier. Menotti fears that Maradona will not be able to withstand the enormous pressure of the World Cup in his country. Argentina won its first world title in 1978 without Maradona.


Shortly before leaving for Boca Juniors, Maradona meets then German national team player Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in an unfamiliar environment. What do they have in common? After all, Rummenigge was voted European Footballer of the Year in 1980. Maradona was named Footballer of the Year for South America and Argentina in 1979 and 1980.

In 1982 it was time: Maradona took part in his first world championship with the A-Team, but was eliminated with Argentina in the second final round. Shortly before the World Cup tournament in Spain, Maradona announced his move to the traditional Spanish club FC Barcelona. This transfers the then-record transfer tax of eleven million D marks to Argentina.

At FC Barcelona, ​​Maradona will initially deal with German manager Udo Lattek, and later with the aforementioned former Argentina national team manager Menotti. Maradona’s successes with Barcelona are modest: winner of the Spanish Cup, winner of the League Cup, winner of the Super Cup, all in 1983. He is not very happy with the Catalans.


In 1984 Maradona moved from FC Barcelona to Serie A for SSC Napoli. The equivalent of 24 million Deutsche Mark transfer fees was a record at the time. The club takes out a loan in order to afford the transfer. According to rumors, the local mafia, the Camorra, co-financed the change. Over 70,000 fans flock to the superstar’s reception at the San Paolo.

In 1987 and 1990, Maradona became Italian champion with Napoli, the only two league titles in the club’s history. In 1989 he also won the Uefa Cup. But in the city of southern Italy the rumor is about the superstar, there is talk of drug use, proximity to the mafia and tax fraud.

The plots near the playing field drain Maradona’s psyche; wants to leave Napoli, the club managers will not allow it. In the spring of 1991, it was discovered that Maradona had used cocaine in a drug test. He is not arrested, the police are too afraid of Napoli fanatics. But Maradona leaves Naples.

Shortly after in Argentina, Maradona was arrested for drug use and sentenced to 14 months in prison with a suspended sentence. In the summer of 1992 Maradona starts all over again at Sevilla FC. But he’s no longer the player he once was.


In his career, Maradona has made 91 international matches, scoring 34 goals. The best known of these joined him on June 22, 1986 at the Aztec Stadium in Mexico City. In the 51st minute of the quarter-finals against England, Maradona collected the ball on English goalkeeper Peter Shilton who fell 1-0 on the net: a hand ball and a fraudulent goal par excellence.

Tunisian referee Ali Bennaceur fled the action in a flash and Argentina scored 1-0. Eventually, thanks to another fantastic goal from Maradona, the South Americans win 2-1 and subsequently win the World Cup for the second time since 1978. Maradona justifies his 1-0 irregular with the “hand of God” he has determined the goal.

Maradona holds the long-awaited World Cup trophy, behind German Chancellor Helmut Kohl.

Before the World Cup, Maradona is in Zurich with the national team. On April 1, 1986 Argentina tests against GC. Our picture below shows Maradona in an interview with a radio reporter at Zurich Airport.


In 1994 Maradona played the last world championship in the United States. At that World Cup, Maradona was found to have a banned substance (ephedrine) in a drug test. He is excluded from the tournament and from all FIFA sports activities. Argentina is eliminated in the round of 16 against Romania.


Already in 1993 Maradona moved from Sevilla FC in Argentina to Newell’s Old Boys. Due to injuries and the difficult relationship with the manager, Maradona leaves the club of the Rosario after just five games. Also in this period Maradona came into conflict with the law: in 1994 he shot a journalist with an air rifle and was sentenced to 34 months with suspended sentence.

Maradona rejoins Boca Juniors in 1995. In August 1997, cocaine was again detected in a doping control. Maradona is suspended, her football career is over.


The goal in the 1986 World Cup quarter-finals against England, when Maradona dribbled the entire opposing team from the center line, was voted the “Goal of the 20th Century” by FIFA. Maradona is also named “World Footballer of the Century”. He carries this title together with Pele. Our photo shows them on 10 June 1987 in the Hardturm tower in Zurich during a match between Italy and Argentina.


Afredo Tedeschi / Reuters

From that moment on, scandals and health problems shape Maradona’s life. On January 4, 2000, while staying in the Uruguayan seaside resort of Punta del Este, he suffered a serious heart attack, attributable to an overdose of cocaine. Subsequently he undergoes rehabilitation in Cuba, where he becomes friends with Fidel Castro.


In October 2008, Maradona became the manager of the Argentine national team. With Argentina’s selection, Maradona survived the 2010 World Cup group stage in South Africa and won the round of 16 against Mexico 3-1. Against Germany there is a clear 0: 4 in the quarter-finals and the tournament is eliminated. This also puts an end to Maradona’s time as national team coach.

From 2011, bus stations in the United Arab Emirates, Mexico and Argentina will follow. More recently, Maradona was the manager of Gimnasia and Esgrima La Plata and in early June he extended his contract until 2021.


Agustin Marcarian / Reuters

At the beginning of November 2020, Maradona will be hospitalized. He feels unwell, a blood clot is removed from his brain during an operation. Maradona is released in mid-November and is expected to recover under the care of her daughter.

On November 25, 2020, Maradona dies of a heart attack.

After Maradona’s death, all of Argentina wept; so also this fan in front of La Bombonera, the Boca Juniors stadium in Buenos Aires.

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