Diego Maradona is considered as one of the greatest footballers ever and on the occasion of his 60th birthday, here are some of the iconic moments from the legend's career.
Diego Maradona is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. He was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the 20th Century award. Maradona's vision, passing, ball control and dribbling skills were combined with his small stature which gave him a low center of gravity allowing him to manoeuvre better than most other football players; he would often dribble past multiple opposing players on a run. His presence and leadership on the field had a great effect on his team's general performance, while he would often be singled out by the opposition. In his international career with Argentina, he earned 91 caps and scored 34 goals. 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 at the Aztec stadium, and won the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player. On the occasion of his 60th birthday, here are some of the memorable instances of Rosario’s ultimate champion. His career was one which saw plenty of highs, lows and some controversies towards the fag end, including serious offences of drug overdose and rehabilitation many times.
1. Happy Birthday Diego Maradona
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Diego Armando Maradona was born on 30 October 1960. At age eight, Maradona was spotted by a talent scout while he was playing in his neighbourhood club Estrella Roja.Diego Maradona spent five years at Argentinos Juniors, from 1976 to 1981, scoring 115 goals in 167 appearances before his USD 4 million transfer to Boca Juniors. Maradona received offers to join other clubs, including River Plate who offered to make him the club's best paid player.Nevertheless, Maradona expressed his will to be transferred to Boca Juniors, the team he always wanted to play for. Maradona signed a contract with Boca Juniors on 20 February 1981. He made his debut two days later against Talleres de Córdoba, scoring twice in the club's 4–1 win. On 10 April, Maradona played his first Superclásico against River Plate at La Bombonera stadium. Boca defeated River 3–0 with Maradona scoring a goal. (Image credit: Twitter)
2. Happy Birthday Diego Maradona
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After the 1982 World Cup, in June, Maradona was transferred to Barcelona in Spain for a then world record fee of USD 7.6 million. In 1983, under coach César Luis Menotti, Barcelona and Maradona won the Copa del Rey beating Real Madrid, and the Spanish Super Cup, beating Athletic Bilbao. On 26 June 1983, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid on the road in one of the world's biggest club games, El Clásico, a match where Maradona scored and became the first Barcelona player to be applauded by archrival Real Madrid fans. The end of the 1983–84 season included a violent and chaotic fight Maradona was directly involved in at the 1984 Copa del Rey final at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid against Athletic Bilbao. At Napoli, Maradona reached the peak of his professional career: he soon inherited the captain's armband from Napoli veteran defender Giuseppe Bruscolotti and quickly became an adored star among the club's fans; in his time there he elevated the team to the most successful era in its history. Maradona played for Napoli at a period when north–south tensions in Italy were at a peak due to a variety of issues, notably the economic differences between the two. Led by Maradona, Napoli won their first ever Serie A Italian Championship in 1986–87. (Image credit: Twitter)
3. Happy Birthday Diego Maradona
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"The hand of God" is a phrase used by Argentine footballer Diego Maradona to describe an association football goal he scored in a quarter-final match between Argentina and England during the 1986 FIFA World Cup. The goal took place on June 22, 1986, at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. According to the rules, Maradona should have received a yellow card for a clear "handball" incident and the goal disallowed. However, as the referees did not have a clear view of the play and video assistant referee technology did not yet exist, the goal stood and Argentina led 1–0. The game ended with a 2–1 win for the Argentines, thanks to a second goal scored by Maradona, known as the "Goal of the Century". After the match, Diego Maradona stated that the goal was scored "a little with his head, and a little with the hand of God". (Image credit: Twitter)
4. Happy Birthday Diego Maradona
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Maradona's second goal, just four minutes after the hotly disputed hand-goal, was later voted by FIFA as the greatest goal in the history of the World Cup. During the course of the tournament, Maradona attempted or created more than half of Argentina's shots, attempted a tournament best 90 dribbles – some three times more than any other player – and was fouled a record 53 times, winning his team twice as many free kicks as any player. Maradona scored or assisted 10 of Argentina's 14 goals, including the assist for the winning goal in the final, ensuring that he would be remembered as one of the greatest names in football history. By the end of the World Cup, Maradona went on to win the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament by unanimous vote and was widely regarded to have won the World Cup virtually single-handedly. (Image credit: Twitter)
5. Happy Birthday Diego Maradona
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His failed drugs test at the 1994 World Cup signalled the end of his international career, which had lasted 17 years and yielded 34 goals from 91 games, as well as one winner's medal and one runners-up medal in the World Cup. However, in his later years, he would have a huge drug overdose problem which resulted in several heart attacks. He had to undergo an extensive rehabilitation program in Cuba after the end of his playing days but now, he has recovered. Recently, he tested negative for the coronavirus. (Image credit: Twitter)
