Diago Maradona from Slum Villa Fiorito Motivates me Most
Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams: Chapter 106
Palash Biswas
Diego Maradona Video
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=3Mou1s5lzDc
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Villa Fiorito
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=b2fu101mlmk
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Escuelas de Villa Fiorito.
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=YRji4mdntZA
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maradona magia!
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=b3shGm6uunc
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The Best of Diego Maradona
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=NBpu-M6kXCk
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MARADONA'S TRICKS
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=i_PP7QJwNpM
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Diego Armando Maradona - England vs Argentina - Mexico 1986
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=3z-qm-Sb_4s
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maradona
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=bbaa2oTazMU
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Maradona passing
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=--ACUzCCza8
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Maradona the Original
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=3tCoMtPuL3Q
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Diego Maradona has long been known for his lucid and devil-may-care statements. As unpredictable behind the microphone as he was on the pitch, the famous No10 can be as charming and forthright as he can be volatile and controversial. At FIFA.com we compiled ten of best from the world's most famous Argentinian.
"Yes, I am a ‘blackhead'* and proud of it. I'll never forget where I came from."
*From the Spanish cabecita negra - a derogatory term used to refer to people from Argentina who came from a poor background.
"You are never in control with drugs, they control you. Anyone who says, ‘I can handle them' is either lying or deluding themselves."
"Why am I always fighting against the powers that be? Simple, I loathe any form of injustice."
"I've packed 70 years into my 40. I've seen it all. I went from a dirt track in Villa Fiorito to the top of the world. When I got there, I had to figure out for myself what to do. Nobody ever told me what it would be like or how to handle it."
"I was and always will be happy with my ‘hand of God' goal against the English. I offer them a thousand apologies - that's the truth - but I'd do it again a thousand times."
"My own little revolution is to defend the small people, not as a hero, not as some distant God, but just as a simple footballer."
"I tried to find happiness playing football, and through it I tried to bring happiness to others. Football is the most beautiful game in the world. Yes, I made mistakes and I paid the price, but you can never tarnish football."
"The only player that can't be replaced in the national team is Javier Mascherano. In Argentina, it's Mascherano plus ten."
"I'll be the one making decisions. Of course, I'll listen to Carlos (Bilardo), because he's experienced and won a lot of things. But I am the one who decides who's playing and who's not."
"This is a moment to enjoy. I'd be more than happy if my parents can see me going out on the field as the national coach, but I don't want to cry. The national team needs a man who makes people laugh and not cry, someone who can bring enjoyment and not tears."
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=928734.html
Villa Fiorito is suburb in the Lomas de Zamora Partido (formerly in Lanús Partido) in Buenos Aires Province, to the south of central Buenos Aires. It forms part of the Greater Buenos Aires urban conurbation. Many Italian and Spanish descendants live there, but in recent decades people from other provinces have come to live near central Buenos Aires, creating new slums in the city. Maradona, considered one of the best footballers of all time, was born in Villa Fiorito.
The people of Nandigram may meet Diego Maradona, if sports minister Subhas Chakraborty keeps his word.
At a DYFI rally in Nandigram recently, Subhas said: “I shall try to bring Maradona to Nandigram by a helicopter.”
The soccer star will arrive in Calcutta on December 6. Nandigram will vote in an Assembly bypoll at the end of the year.
CPM MP Lakshman Seth, who was present, said: “We will build the chemical hub in Nayachar. If any one tries to prevent it, the people of Haldia will break their legs.”
In response to Seth’s warning, Trinamul Congress’s MLA from Contai (south), Subhendu Adhikary, tonight lodged a complaint against Seth in Nandigram police station.
This Man from the Slum Villa Fiorito in Buenos Aires Province MOTIVATES me most from the first day I saw him with Foot Ball. His personality, his involvement with his native place and people, his outbirsts .. everything overwhelms me and at times, I feel Great to identify myself with Diago, a Human being intact despite Information Explosion and globalisation. He loves Fidel Castro as much as Foot Ball! He is personified Patriotism! Pele is certainly, as much as a Legend as Maradona happens to be. But I never feel Pele either in my heart or mind. He seems rather som technology Icon sophisticared related to Football and uses his dignified status to enhance the Phoenix Order of zionist White Hindu Corporate War Post Modern Manusmriti Apartheid Galaxy Order. But Maradon seems to be genetically close to our ancestor`s dreams! He is as much as Impulsive as our Negroid Indigenous people are. He mixes Ideology with Football. Thus, I love Maradona and never get the FEEL for any other sports personality worldwide including our own Sachin Tendulkar, Gavaskar and kapildev!
He scored a goal in a World Cup semifinal with his hand and was kicked out of another World Cup for a positive drug test. He has battled longtime cocaine and weight problems. He's been linked to the Mafia and allegedly still owes millions of dollars in back taxes in Italy.
He suffered a heart attack in 2004 from an apparent cocaine overdose and spent 10 days in intensive care. He had his stomach stapled in 2005 in Colombia. He was on his death bed again in 2007 with alcohol-induced hepatitis.
He pals around with Cuba's Fidel Castro and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, and he told Venezuelan TV: “I hate everything that comes from the United States. I hate it with all my strength.” Several countries refuse him entry.
He once fired an air pistol at journalists and received a two-year suspended sentence.
He's also the new national soccer coach of Argentina.
The AFA, Argentina's soccer federation, made it official yesterday. Diego Armando Maradona, 48, is national coach. There had been reports for a week that Maradona would replace Alfio Basile, who resigned last month after Argentina lost to Chile and dropped to third place in South American qualifying for the 2010 World Cup, but it seemed so surreal, so implausible that it took an afternoon news conference in Buenos Aires to confirm it beyond a reasonable doubt.
There was Maradona, in a dark suit and tie, sitting between federation head Julio Grondona and technical secretary Carlos Bilardo, saying: “The one thing I am not is nervous. I am calm. . . . I'm not afraid of losing my crown. We have had a mini-crisis, and I would be a coward if I did not take this on.”
His coaching résumé looks like this: Two short stints at Argentine clubs more than a decade ago, at Mandiyu in 1994 and Racing Club in 1995, lasting a total of 23 games and resulting in three victories.
But details like that don't matter when you're Diego Maradona in Argentina, or Michel Platini in France, or Hugo Sanchez in Mexico. It is in the fine print of greatness, the part no one bothers to read. The deal is, you get an iconic soccer player who does your nation proud and ranks among the all-time legends of the game – and in return, one day he'll want to be national coach.
I am searching the roots of our people across the great Ganges. The Brahminical History has wiped out the traces of our people in Bengal. Since Shasank we never know about the history of Bengal until Pal dynesty. The origin of Bengal is claimed in Charyapada written by Black untouchables between 7th to 10th centuries. But we never get any detail of this period which is defined as Dark Age. After Sashanka our people ruled tehmselves and pal Dynasty is known for Buddhism. Sen Dynasty imported the present day rulers, the micro minority three percent Brahmins. Demise of SEN Dymasty introduced Islamic Rule in bengal and the Capital shifted from GAUR to Murshidabad. The War of PLASSY in 1757 changed the History of India. India was a British colony for two hundred years. hitherto unknown the Brahaminical Bengalies made themselves Global and constituted an unchallangeable Hegemony.
The aboriginal Indigenous communities continued the Resistance against Imperialism from the first day of the Rule of east India company. Midnapur, Bankura, Purulia, Birbhoom, Murshidabad, Maldah, 24 Parganas, Burdwan, Duars, North Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa and Chhattisgargh have the legecy of this tradition of Resistance!
Nandigram, Singur, Lalgargh, Kalingnagar and Dantewada are located inthis zone.
I visited remote areas in Birbhum, Malda and Murshidabad last week withmy wife Sabita! Me and sabita returned from the Tour last day only. Now the Brahaminical Mraxist Hegemony suffers a Stand Off in Jhargram Lalgargh zone just after nandigram and singur insurrection!
Meanwhile, Diego Maradona’s extraordinary career comes full circle when Argentina face Scotland in a friendly at Hampden Park on Wednesday.
It is appropriate time to evaluate the role of Maradona in Indigenous black Untouchable life worldwide. If Barrack Obam is a political phenemona and it sets the Obamania mood, Maradona is an Indigenous Aboriginal Profile lareger than Life with which we must Identify to achieve the Dream of martin Luther King! We never know how Black Obama would prove himself, but we know that Maradona never betrayed his Identity despite anarchist Life style overblown by Internationa media and the global hegemony!
Being a Bengali, I always preferred Football to Cricket. It is the People`s game and maradona happpens to be the People`s Player. He is more loved by our people than any people`s Princess!Association football is one of India's most popular sports, and is said to rank second only behind cricket in popularity, although some reporting considers domestic football to be more popular than domestic cricket. Football is played in almost all schools in India. Football is also said to be the top sport in the states of Goa, Kerala, Manipur, West Bengal, Mizoram and Sikkim.
In September 2006, India and Brazil signed an agreement formalise a scheme to train Indian footballers and coaches.
Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), in the state of West Bengal, is considered to be the home of Indian football. The city contains the two most famous Indian teams East Bengal Club and Mohun Bagan AC. Derbies between these two clubs often draw crowds around the 120,000 mark.
Recently Goan clubs have been doing very well in the I-league. Dempo FC are the defending champions.
The game in India is administered by the All India Football Federation (AIFF), which is affiliated to the regional Asian Football Confederation, as well as to the worldwide body FIFA. The Indian national team has entered into the regional Asian Cup competition as well as the World Cup. The Indian women's national team has also played in various competitions. Youth football is administered by the governmental Sports Authority of India.
The game is also administered at state levels by state football associations, some of which predate the AIFF. The Indian Football Association, which is responsible for the game in the state of West Bengal, used to be in de-facto charge of the game in India before they pushed for the creation of a national body in association with other state associations.
My family was divided on Football as everyone in the family excluding me and my Chhotokaka supported East Bengal becuase we originally belonged to East Bengal, Jassore. My uncle was a doctor and his mindset was quite secular. He was Cosmopolitan in caharcter. He and me supported Mohan Bagan. We followed everything in kolkata Football hearing Radio commentry and reading Bengali Newspaper basumati which we used to get almost a week late in my village basantipur situated in District nainital terai in Dineshpur Pantnagar area!
As a living legend Pele was aggressive enough to visit my dream so often. We also felt proud for Pradip Bannerjee, Chuni Goswami, Mewalal and Akbar. In seventies we have been crazy for Goal Keeper Thangraj. I was very crazy about Mohan Bagan Forward Subhash Bhowmic and he captained the team. In eighties we were spell bound by Majid Baskar and Bhaskar Ganguli. But direct live telecast of Interantional matches and world cup Finals wiped out Kolkata Football from our memory.
Pradip Kumar Banerjee (October 15, 1936 – ) or PK Banerjee as he is called often, is one of the famous football players in India. He was born in Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. He was one among the first few Arjuna Awardees, when the awards were instituted in 1961. He was awarded the prestigious Padma Shri Award in 1990 and was named Indian Footballer of the 20th Century by FIFA. He represented India for 13 years, and was one of the top scorers in Asia at that time.In 1954 he moved on to Kolkata and joined the Mohun Bagan Club in West bengal later moving on to represent Eastern Railway Soccer Club. He played striker position in football and had scored 65 goals in 84 international games which he played during his career. His first game as part of the Indian team, was in the 1955 Quadrangular tournament in Dhaka, East Pakistan (now capital of Bangladesh) at the age of 19.[2]
He represented India in three Asian Games namely, the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo, the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta where India clinched the gold medal in football and then the 1966 Asian Games in Bangkok. He became an olympian at the age of 20, when he was part of the national team that played at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. He was the captain of the Indian Football Team at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, where he scored the famous equaliser against France to hold a 1-1 draw. He represented India thrice at the Merdeka Cup in Kuala Lumpur where India won silver in 1959 and 1964 and bronze in 1965. Recurring injuries forced him to drop out of the national team leading to his retirement in 1967.
After his retirement, his first stint at coaching came with the East Bengal Football Club, one of the clubs best times from 1970-75, when they won the Calcutta League six consecutive times. In the 1977 season he guided the Mohan Bagan Football Club to a historic feat, winning the IFA Shield, Rovers Cup and Durand Cup espectively to achieve their first-ever triple-crown triumph in one season. He became the national coach for the first time in 1972 when he coached the Indian side for the qualifying matches of the 1972 Munich Olympics. He went on to coach the Indian Football Team from 1972 to 1986.[1] He joined the Tata Football Academy at Jamshedpur as its Technical Director from 1991 to 1997.[3] PK was awarded the player of the Millennium in 2005 by FIFA. He had also won the International Fair Play Award from the Olympic Committee, a feat that is yet to be repeated by any Indian footballer.In 1999, Banerjee again took up the post of the Technical director of the Indian Football team. [4] In 1961, Banerjee's father, Probhat Kumar Banerjee, died.[5] On October 26, 2006, 70-year-old Banerjee suffered a minor cerebral haemorrhage at the nursing home where he is admitted.[6]
Subimal Goswami (January 15, 1938 - , commonly known by his nickname Chuni Goswami is an Indian international footballer and first class cricketer. He was born in Kishoreganj District of undivided Bengal (now in Bangladesh). As a striker, he played 50 international matches representing India. As a first class cricketer, he played Ranji Trophy for Bengal.
Football career
Chuni Goswami holds the distinction of playing for a single club, Mohun Bagan, throughout his club career despite numerous offers from other clubs including one reported offer from Tottenham Hotspur.
Club career
Goswami joined the Mohun Bagan Junior Team in 1946 at the age of 8 years. He was a part of the Junior squad up to 1954 and then graduated to the Mohun Bagan senior team. He continued playing for Mohun Bagan till his retirement in 1968. During his stay with the club, he captained the club in 5 seasons from 1960 to 1964.
International career
Chuni Goswami made his international debut for India in 1956 during the team's 1-0 victory over the Chinese Olympic team.[3] He went on to play for India in 50 international matches including in Olympics, Asian Games, Asia Cup and Merdeka Cup. He captained India to the Asian Games Gold Medal in 1962 and a Silver in the 1964 Asia Cup in Tel Aviv and in the Merdeka Cup.
In Sixties, during our primary school days,Me and my friends actually established a Foot Ball club in our village, NABIN SANGHA. Krishana who returned from bengal and used to be an excellent player was the President and me, the general secxretary. Krishna could play any game with same intensity. His father Mandar mandal was very affectionate to me. Krishna was three or four years older than me. He left for Bengal while he was a student of class two. Mandar Babu believed that the Children should be taught in bengali Medium. Since we had to read in Hindi Medium, he shifted his eldest son krishan to hsi maternal uncle`s place in shyamnagar near Barrackpur in West bengal. Then, Bengal was struck by unprecedented Food Insecurity which led to Food Movement in bengal in sixties. thus, Krishna returned to basantipur and got admission once again in class two after two years while I was reading in class three. nabin Sangh was the idea of Krishna. Tekka, Hari, Panchoo,Ranjit and every village boy was excited. We rushed to rudrapur, the nearest city and got a Football. Elders in the Village used to play Volley Ball. But we introduced football who never knew other sports other than KABADI. We played in the middle of the village where a well was located.Often the Ball would drop into the well. It was a risky affair to get the ball. Moreover, the elders were not ready to allow us to waste our times in sports as we could not afford sports time as we had to work at home and in our fields. We were the natural incharge of domestic animals. We could play the rustic games while looking after the pets. but we were not allowed to play the team game like Football as it demanded practice time. We never lost the heart and got a playground near the river followinf beside Basantipur. Very soon, Haripura dam was created on the land and vilages of the tribals Buksa and the dam digested all the rivers in downstream. So we lost our river as well as the playground.
Later, we extended the Club while we got admission in Dineshpur High School. It was Terai nabin Sangh and was replicated on the line of Tari bengal Udbastu Samiti. Later, we esatblished another Club during Emergency, ARUNODAYA SANGHA. We realised how football was a motivation factor! during mid sixties , the flavour of Food Movement in bengal was so intense that it overwhelmed our dreams. In late sixties , the Naxal Movement haunted our soul and we used Nabin Sangh as an Awakening Tool rather than a sports club. during emergency, I had shifted myself to DSB College Nainital as a Graduation student. Since we opposed emergency, Arunodaya Sangh was never a sports club.
In Nainital, sayed ali became the first Olympian and Hockey was the keyword there. In our High school we also played hockey. Nainital hosted Traders Cup for Hockey. But we had junior senior level Football tournaments also. We boasted of DSB Hockey as well as Football teams. We had also Cricket, Soft Ball, Base ball, Basket Ball and athelitics teams in the college. but the craze for Football never lost.
But it was never the same Motivation until 1986 Football worldcup, when we actually able to see Mradona Live on TV. I have already seen Escape to Victroy, the film and had been a Pele fan. I instantly changed my loyality. Expulsion of Maradona from the World of Football haunted me so much taht I wrote a Novelletee in Hindi, ASHAREEREE, the Celestial!
Football in India was spread during the days of the British Empire. Many football clubs in India were created during this time, and pre-date many of the organisations and clubs, such as FIFA, which are predominant in the game today. The first recorded game in India took place between ‘Calcutta Club of Civilians' and ‘The Gentlemen of Barrackpore' in 1854.[2]
Calcutta FC was the first club to be established in 1872, though reports suggest that they were initially a rugby club and switched their attentions to football as late as 1894. Other early clubs include Dalhousie Club, Traders Club and Naval Volunteers Club.
Initially games were played between army teams, however clubs were soon set up around the country. Mohun Bagan Athletic Club was set up in what is now West Bengal in 1889. The club became famous in 1911 when it became the first Indian team to lift the IFA Shield, a tournament previously won only by British teams based in India. It defeated the Eastern Yorkshire Regiment 2-1 in the final of the tournament in a victory that is still regarded by many as the greatest by an Indian team before Independence.
The Indian Football Association (IFA) was established once again in Calcutta in 1893, but did not have a single Indian on its board till the 1930s.
The national football team was also quite successful until the 1970s, qualifying for Olympic tournaments and the FIFA World Cup. The team qualified for the 1950 World Cup finals in Brazil, but could not appear as they still played in their bare feet at that time.
The Indian team also won the 1951 and 1962 Asian Games gold medals in football. In 1956 the team finished fourth at the Melbourne Olympics. In August 2007, the Indian team won the Nehru Cup for the first time in its history beating Syria 1-0. In August 2008, India defeated Tajikistan 4-1 to lift the AFC Challenge Cup and inturn qualified for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar.
Kingfisher East Bengal FC
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East Bengal
Full name Kingfisher East Bengal Football Club
Nickname(s) The Red-and-Gold Brigade
Torch
Hilsa
Founded 1920
Ground East Bengal Ground or Salt Lake Stadium
(Capacity: 120,000 - SLS; 24,000 - EBG)
Chairman Dr Pranab Dasgupta
Head Coach Stanley Rozario
League I-League
2007-08 6th
Home colours
Away colours
Kingfisher East Bengal Football Club is an Indian football club based in Kolkata. The club was originally known as the East Bengal Club. In 1998, the name of the club was changed from the East Bengal Club to the Kingfisher East Bengal Football Club as United Breweries obtained a 50% stake in the club and renamed it to promote their Kingfisher beer.
East Bengal also has a multi-collaborative tie-in with Leicester City FC, UK for an exchange program with junior footballers, in respect to coaching techniques, sports science, and other developmental programs.East Bengal club was regarded as "The Best Club of India" by F.A(The Football Association)of England in 1951. East Bengal was the first Indian club to win IFA Shield for three consecutive years(1949-'51).
East Bengal has a record of winning Kolkata League for six years in a row(1970-1975).It is the first club in India to win back to back National Football League titles(2003 & 2004).The club has a record of winning 23 trophies from Indian capital New Delhi.(Durand Cup:16 times and DCM Trophy:7 times).
In 1970,East Bengal created a history by defeating Pas Club(Iran) 1-0 in IFA Shield final. It was the first victory of an Indian club over foreign team since the independence. East Bengal has a glorious past record against the foreign clubs. It is the only club in India to participate in Asian Club Championship/AFC Cup 10 times.
In 2003 July,East Bengal created sensation not only in India but in the whole continent also when they won LG Asean Cup from Jakarta beating BEC Tero Sasana in the finals.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Bengal_Club
Mohun Bagan AC
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mohun Bagan Athletic Club (Mohun Bagan AC) is a sports club, best known for its football team, based in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Mohun Bagan AC is one of the oldest football clubs in Asia, having been established on August 15, 1889 and was later declared as the National Club of India. The first President of this club was Bhupendra Nath Bose. Mohun Bagan club has a complete Football Academy in collaboration with Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) at Durgapur.
The football team has been hugely successful since its establishment and has maintained its status as one of India's most successful club having won multiple trophies of national significance. Federation Cup (India), Rovers Cup, Durand Cup, IFA Shield and National & Domestic League to name a few. Mohun Bagan was the first Indian team to defeat a European team, when the team defeated the East Yorkshire Regiment, 2-1 to lift the 1911 IFA Shield. Mohun Bagan has carried on an intense local rivalry with the East Bengal Club.
History
The First MBAC Logo, which was later on changedMohun Bagan Sporting Club, as it was initially known, was founded on 15 August 1889. The club's first meeting was held at 14, Balaram Ghosh Street in Kolkata and included several high profile individuals including Bhupendra Nath Bose who was later to become the President of the Indian National Congress. The club's first secretary was Jatindranath Basu.
The club's first ground was at the famous marble palace, known as Mohun Bagan Villa. It was situated at Fariapukur Street, in northern Kolkata. Not sufficiently large enough as football field, it is believed that Mohun Bagan played their first ever match on this very ground against the students of Eden Hindu hostel. The club's membership requirements at this time stipulated that the management required students to join with permission from their parents, and special attention was given to etiquette and education. Shortly before the club's first anniversary, students of Presidency College, who were also the members of Mohun Bagan, invited their professor, the famous grammatologist Prof. F.J. Rhow to visit. Rhow pointed out that due to a lack of facilities for sports such as shooting and angling, the word 'Athletic' would be more appropriate. Thus, the club came to be known as "Mohun Bagan Athletic Club". The 2nd anniversary assembly was presided by Sir Thomas Holland who was later appointed as a member of Governor General Council.
In 1891, the benevolence of the Maharaja of Shyampukur, Durga Charan Laha saw the club's ground relocated to his grounds at Shyampukur. Later, with the assistance of Mr. Harry Lee, the chairman of Kolkata Corporation, the club's ground moved to Shyam Square which it now shared with the Aryans Club and Bagbazar Club. Mohun Bagan's first tournament was the Coochbehar Cup, which was held in 1893. Mohun Bagan's first opponent team was a European team, the 'C' Company of Sussex Regiment.
The first sport to be played is reported to be football, but other games were soon introduced to the club. This included hockey, tennis, badminton and athletics. Cricket was introduced to the club's schedule in the 1900s. The annual athletics event at the club is held with great pomp and show.
The biggest event in the club calendar is the Mohun Bagan Day. This is held on July 29, which is the day the football team lifted the IFA Shield for the first time in 1911 defeating the British. "Mohun Bagan is not a football team. It is an oppressed country, rolling in the dust, which has just started to rise its head" - said Achintya Kumar Sengupta in "Kallol Jug" magazine after the historic victory of 1911 IFA Shield.
A postage stamp was issued by the Government of India in 1989 during the club's centenary year to commemorate the 1911 victory of the team. The then Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi honoured Mohun Bagan with the title as the "National Club of India" for boosting up the Indian Nationalism which occurred after this win.
Mohun Bagan Athletic Club has been chosen among the top 11 clubs by FIFA to form an Elite Task Force for club football. As of September 2007, there are representatives from clubs like Bayern Munich, River Plate and Manchester United. This task force will work for the betterment of the club football. From India, only Swapan Sadhan Basu, Honorary President of Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is the representative at FIFA representing Mohun Bagan.[1]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohun_Bagan_AC
Maradona's goal - that Argentina win World Cup
New Argentina coach Diego Maradona has said in no uncertain terms that his goal is to win the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. He added that he will seek to avoid controversy with the high officials of world football.
"The idea is to come first (in the World Cup), not to be among the top four. I don't like that thing about the top four at all," Maradona told reporters in Glasgow on Tuesday.
The former Argentine football legend is set to make his debut as national team coach on Wednesday, in a friendly game against Scotland.
Maradona said he plans to make many changes in the Argentina team, and to push through his vision of the game.
"There will obviously be many changes. But we will have to fiddle little by little. Still, there will be changes in tactical aspects, and also changes in people."
Maradona's self-declared goal is to make the player "feel well, pampered, in the national team, happy to defend the national team jersey".
He only mentioned by name one of Argentina's players, the talented Barcelona striker Lionel Messi.
"He is going to have freedom, full freedom to play, to give us Argentines satisfaction. Let him be a passer, let him take the team forward, let him lead the team."
In a crowded press conference with several hundred reporters from around the world, Maradona appeared serene, used clear concepts and short sentences and generally avoided controversy.
However, he reacted when one British reporter asked him how he would feel if his team was eliminated from a World Cup with a goal scored with a hand - an obvious reference to Maradona's "hand of god" goal against England in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
"Let me remind you that England won a final against Germany with a goal that was not such. And the whole world saw that. Despite the protests, history did not change. That is why I cannot be judged in any way," Maradona said, with reference to the 1966 World Cup final, in which England were awarded a doubtful goal.
Following a history of clashes with the bosses of world football, Maradona stressed that he will seek to avoid controversy.
"I will not go into controversy. Neither with (FIFA president Joseph) Blatter nor with (UEFA boss Michel) Platini, nor with anyone else. We have to tone things down. As the national team coach, I have to think a lot about my team."
At several stages during the conference, Maradona noted that the designation to coach Argentina was "a dream."
"I needed the national team and I believe the national team needed a new guide. Here I am, enjoying myself so, so much to be by the side of the players, seeking to enter their hearts," he stressed. "I always liked challenges."
There have been plentiful highs and lows, including a brush with death in 2004, since Maradona gave a scintillating performance as an 18-year-old in Argentina’s 3-1 friendly win over the Scots in February 1979.
Whether Maradona, who lifted the World Cup in 1986, can have a positive impact as coach is the question being debated in Buenos Aires and around the world.
“Of course this is a new start. But I’m not looking at it as if I have to show things. I’m here to give my support, my experience to the national team,” he said.
Wednesday’s game will be closely monitored by the family of football and he will want it to go better than his World Cup debut as a player, a shock defeat for the-then holders against Belgium in the opening game of the 1982 finals in Spain.
For the moment, and in the absence of key players Lionel Messi and Juan Roman Riquelme, Maradona just wants some of his aura to rub off on this generation, having been an inspiration behind the scenes for their Olympic gold medal three months ago.
“As long as we’ve got the ball and we get some respect for the jersey I’ll go away very calm,” Maradona told reporters upon arrival in Glasgow. “I’m not asking the lads for more, they’ve taken some knocks.”
Argentina have won only one of their last eight matches and were beaten 0-1 by Chile last month, a World Cup qualifying result that led to Alfio Basile’s resignation as coach.
“That’s what I’ll ask of them, to play for Maradona,” added the 48-year-old. “I’d have liked to have had them but Argentina can’t stand with their arms crossed if they don’t have Riquelme and Messi. We have to look for alternatives and we have them.”
The match should answer questions about who Maradona views as a playmaker, with Independiente’s Daniel Montenegro a possibility, and where he sees Carlos Tevez fitting in, attacking from deep or as a front man.
Porto midfielder Lucho Gonzalez is back after losing favour with Basile while Ezequiel Lavezzi may get the chance to establish himself as more than a bit-part player.
On Monday night, however, Celtic ball boy Adam Brown was the surprise hero, earning a big hug from Maradona when he took his first practice session.
A low-key workout by the squad ended with Maradona pacing Celtic’s Parkhead turf looking for something in the grass.
His staff took part in the search for the lost item and a dozen ball boys formed a police-style cordon and walked down the pitch before Brown found it, a crucifix on a chain.
A joyous Maradona, who had been fairly quiet during the warm-up and a nine-a-side practice game that he refereed, bounded up to the ball boys and embraced Brown.
He then gave him his woolly hat in gratitude amid cheers from a few spectators in the stands.
Maradona made his customary sign of the cross as he left the pitch, bringing to an end Argentina’s visit to Parkhead.
The 1986 finals in Mexico, where he almost single-handedly guided Argentina to glory, represented the high point of a career steeped in both brilliance and controversy.
Maradona’s five goals in Mexico included two against England in a quarter final grudge match, which in many ways has come to define him, showing why he could be both reviled and revered in the space of 90 minutes.
The first of those goals was the fisted ‘Hand of God’ effort past a stranded Peter Shilton; the second a wondrous individual strike which saw Maradona run half the length of the field and skip past several English defenders to score.
With England out of the way, Maradona netted another magical goal in the semi-finals against Belgium, once again his stocky build and low centre of gravity giving him a fantastic ability to change direction abruptly and leave his markers trailing.
Even in the final, when he was well shackled by the German midfield, he was able to find room for a sublime killer pass in the last minute for the goal that gave Argentina a 3-2 victory.
But if Mexico was the highpoint of Maradona’s career, the same cannot be said for his three other appearances at the World Cup, all of which ended in ignominy for the ‘boy from the Barrios’.
Born on October 30, 1960, just outside Buenos Aires, Maradona began his career playing for Los Cebollitos (The Little Onions), before he moved on to Argentinos Juniors.
His talent soon came to the attention of Argentina’s selectors, and he became his country’s youngest-ever international when he was picked for a friendly against Hungary at 16.
He captained Argentina to victory in the 1978 Youth World Cup and was voted South American Player of the Year in 1979 and 1980, Maradona was signed by Spain’s Barcelona in 1982 for a then world record transfer fee.
Following his heroics in Mexico, Maradona again played a captain’s role as Argentina reached the final of the 1990 World Cup in Italy.
This time, however, Maradona left in shame, tearfully refusing to shake hands with Fifa’s president after Argentina lost a foul-tempered final 0-1 to Germany.
It was the beginning of the end. In 1991, the Italian football federation suspended him for 15 months for testing positive for cocaine and Maradona retreated into obscurity.
He re-emerged in Argentine colours having slimmed down and looking fit in time for the 1994 World Cup finals in the US. But his fitness appeared to have been artificially engineered ? he was kicked out of the finals after failing a dope test for ephedrine, quitting international football thereafter.
Since his retirement in 1997 ? he finished his career with an unsuccessful two-year spell at Boca Juniors ? Maradona has been dogged by a series of health scares.
In April 2004 he suffered a heart attack following a cocaine overdose and spent weeks in intensive care. He survived that episode but his weight subsequently ballooned to alarming levels, prompting him to undergo gastric bypass surgery in 2005.
MaraDid you know that... in 1980 Argentina lost 3-1 against England at Wembley. A very young Maradona did a fantastic play starting from midfield, and going past a few opponents, but in front of the goalkeeper he decided to shoot and the ball went just a few inches wide. Six years later, in Mexico, same opponents, same play. But this time Diego goes past the goalkeeper and scores the greatest goal ever.dona in Naples
Who is Diego Armando Maradona?
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Who is Diego Armando Maradona?Diego with S.S.C.NapoliPictures of Maradona in NaplesStatistics about every season of Maradona in NaplesWhat Diego means for NaplesA brief history of S.S.C.NapoliDownload the songs dedicated to Diego from the Napoli fansVideos of his best goalsPoems dedicated to MaradonaBiographyMaradona on the webAntonio Careca home pageYour comments
OJE VITA, OJE VITA MIA...
Maybe you are wondering what this song is. Well, it is a Neapolitan traditional song named " 'O surdato 'nnammurato" (the soldier in love) and it is one of the most popular songs of the Napoli supporters.
The chorus "Oje vita, oje vita mia, oje core 'e chistu core, si' stata 'o primm' ammore, 'o primmo e ll'ultimo sarraje pe' me" is very famous. (oh life, oh my life, oh heart of this heart, you have been my first love, the first and the last you will be for me...) was sung at the stadium when Maradona was playing for Napoli, it was like an anthem for those glory years. The Napoli fans still sing it today when the team wins.
Maradona with Boca Juniors
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PicturesStatisticsSounds and songs dedicated to Maradona from the Boca fansPoems dedicated to MaradonaVideos of his best goals with Boca 
Maradona, a slum and the birth of a legend
By Matt Dickinson
Argentina have appointed as their coach a former cocaine addict who prefers to watch football matches waving his shirt over his head rather than thinking logically in a dugout. A man who has enough trouble organizing his own life, never mind meeting the needs of a squad. He once kept his biographer waiting 24 hours in an hotel lobby (the writer never budged from the sofa). And he twice invited me to Buenos Aires for an interview and did not show up.
This is a man who would not do a commercial for Viagra, unlike Pelé, but would make sure he was in attractive company and then swallow the whole packet. A man who does everything to excess, be it bad timekeeping, feuds, drugs, sublime skills; and whose international coaching regime, which begins against Scotland in Glasgow today evening, is surely doomed as a result.
It is a crackers appointment, but that does not mean it is inexplicable, nor that the world does not wish him well. Look at it another way: putting Maradona in charge makes more sense to the Argentineans than turning to a Swede or an Italian -- as, in our desperation, the English have done. The national team are, after all, a representative side and no one symbolizes Argentine football or its supporting public better than Maradona.
At the last World Cup, he wore the blue-and-white shirt to every game and was spotted cowering behind his seat during tense moments. It is as “the people's player” that he wants to be remembered, the man “taken out of Villa Fiorito and given a kick in the a*** that landed me on top of the world -- but still wearing the same pair of trousers as always, my only ones, the ones I wore in winter and summer”.
We write so often about South American street urchins turned brilliant footballers that it begins to sound clichéd. But you journey into Villa Fiorito, where Maradona was raised, and you come to understand the real hardship behind that throwaway line.
The first challenge is to get there. A dozen taxi drivers in Buenos Aires refused point blank. “You supply the tank and I will think about it,” one joked, before driving off. People flee Fiorito, they don't ask to be taken into this dangerous slum.
The Riachuelo River, an industrial sewer, acts like a moat, cutting it off from Buenos Aires. But eventually we found a driver willing to take us on the half-hour journey along Route 3, albeit taking the precaution of stopping at the police station to pick up an armed escort. “Better to be safe,” Omar Bravo, our driver, said, speaking from experience. He had been held up twice in Fiorito by armed robbers.
Omar spends his spare time helping out in a centre for recovering drug addicts. “The barrio (neighborhood) is very poor and troubled. But you can still love a place full of robbers, addicts and paupers,” he said. He knew every twist and turn of Fiorito's potholed streets and, more importantly, he knew when it was wise to get out of the car for a wander. “Don't take a picture of that house, whatever you do -- drug dealer,” he barked.
There are more deprived areas of Buenos Aires -- Fort Apache, for example, the slum that was once home to Carlos Tévez, the Manchester United forward -- and there is a main street in Fiorito with a pizza parlour and a couple of shops. But it was in the warren of shabby backstreets that Maradona grew up.
Stray dogs wander around looking for scraps. Rag-and-bone men trot past on horse-drawn carts. “It wasn't easy, eh? Nothing was easy,” Maradona once said of this place. “If it was possible to eat, people ate. And if it wasn't, they didn't.” At least the Maradonas had a steady income, with Don Diego, his father, employed at the nearby bonemeal factory as a crusher.
Heading along Mario Bravo, weaving between the holes and ruts in the road, we finally turned the corner into Azamor. A couple of kids were kicking a football around the bumpy street -- “potrero”, or waste-ground children, like Maradona himself.
And then we were in front of 523, the single-storey building that is mostly unchanged since Maradona's day. This is where Maradona, now 48, spent his childhood, although no plaque marks that historic fact.
The shack still has three small rooms - one for cooking and working, a bedroom for the adults and another that housed Maradona and his seven siblings. And it still has the leaks in the roof that required the beds to be moved to avoid the rainfall.
In Maradona's day, that deluge was the only running water. He had to walk down the street to a communal tap to fill a bucket for drinking and washing. Carrying the heavy load helped to build his upper-body strength; useful for holding off malevolent opponents in the years to come.
The front of the house used to be kept clear, but now it is covered in great heaps of trash. The present residents trawl around the bins in Buenos Aires, collecting drink bottles and tin cans to exchange for money. They are grateful for a few extra pesos, although no bribe will get the photographer inside.
From this shack, it is a couple of minutes' drive to Fiorito's football pitches - although, were it not for the posts sticking out of the bare ground, you would think it was just wasteland.
A woman crosses on her bicycle, dust rising from the wheels, while old men sit in La Cabaña de Tony, sipping cold drinks and watching old jalopies slowly go by. It is strange to ponder the millions of pounds poured into English football academies and to see the scrubland that produced the world's greatest talent.
It is at the pitches where you find the only small proof that Maradona played in these streets. An old schoolfriend, Goyo Carrizo, has erected a sign hailing “38 Years of History -- 1967 to 2005”. Maradona's first proper match was here in 1967 and 2005 was when Carrizo decided that someone in Fiorito should pause from eking out a living to mark this site.
Along with Maradona, Carrizo was selected for trials by Argentinos Juniors as a kid. But he managed only a short career as a professional and was forced by poverty back to Fiorito. His friend went on to meet kings and popes, to lift the World Cup and to be coach of his country.
On the morning we visited, Carrizo was out on the pitch having a kickaround with his son. They interrupted the game to come over and make introductions. The boy's name? Diego Armando, of course. Maradona's appointment may well be crackers, but it makes sense to some.
(Source: The Times)
By Tariq Panja
Nov. 19 (Bloomberg) -- _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="110" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">Diego Maradona, who begins his reign as Argentina coach tonight against Scotland, said he's ready to overhaul the national team to ensure it qualifies for the 2010 soccer _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="120" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">World Cup in South Africa.
``A lot needs to change,'' Maradona, 48, told reporters in Glasgow last night. ``Lots of tactical moves are needed, we must change players and the approach but what I really want to change is the players' morale. They need to be happy -- happy to wear the Argentina shirt.''
Maradona, a national icon after leading Argentina to the 1986 World Cup, was appointed two weeks ago when _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="110" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">Alfio Basile resigned after a run of poor results. The choice sparked criticism in soccer-crazy Argentina where Maradona's lack of coaching experience and off-field excesses concerned many.
The former national team captain has battled addictions to cocaine, alcohol and food after ending his soccer career, which reached its zenith in 1986.
``The only objective we have with this group of players is to come first,'' Maradona said. ``That's got be the aim and objective.''
Maradona almost died in 2004 when he suffered heart failure. A year later he had his stomach stapled to cut his weight after it ballooned because of binge eating. He balked yesterday when a reporter asked if he was physically up to the task of leading his country.
``I get up every day,'' he repeated three times, shaking his head, while staring at the reporter.
Lining up on the opposition bench in Glasgow will be _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="110" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">Terry Butcher, once an England international defender who suffered at the hands of 5-foot, 5-inch (1.65 meter) Maradona.
Hand of God
Maradona helped Argentina knock England out of the _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="120" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">1986 World Cup by scoring two goals, the first with his hand and the second after waltzing past many of the English players. Butcher, a Scotland assistant coach, said he won't shake his opponent's hand. Maradona is unfazed.
``I don't know why Butcher is taking this attitude,'' he said. ``Let Butcher continue with his life and I'll continue with mine.''
The English have never forgotten Maradona for his _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="120" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">``Hand of God'' opening goal when he punched the ball into the net. The Argentine coach said the English should get over it and added that England's _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="120" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">World Cup win in 1966 came courtesy of a controversial refereeing decision. England beat West Germany 4-2 after extra time, with a debate raging to this day over whether the crucial third goal from _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="110" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">Geoff Hurst crossed the line.
``England won a World Cup with a goal that never crossed the line,'' Maradona said. ``I don't think it's fair that people should judge me when things like that went on.''
Maradona said his focus is on the future. He takes charge of his first World Cup qualification matches in March, with _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="120" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">Argentina third in South America's qualifying group with eight games remaining. The top four teams qualify.
To contact the reporter on this story: _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="110" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">Tariq Panja at in Glasgow via London on _DELAY="50" T_WIDTH="110" T_BGCOLOR="#ddedd9" T_FONTFACE="Verdana,sans-serif" T_FONTCOLOR="#000000" T_STATIC="true" T_ABOVE="true">tpanja@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: November 18, 2008 19:01 ESTThe world's eyes on Maradona
Even if the attendance falls substantially below the national stadium's 52,000 capacity, the anticipated 35,000 or so will still represent a considerable increase on the figure the SFA would normally expect for a friendly at this time of year.
The deepened interest is entirely attributable to the presence of a man who drew a crowd to his arrival at Glasgow Airport on Sunday that would have been the envy of senior football clubs throughout the land. Such will be the focus on Argentina's most revered sporting hero that it would be no surprise to discover that some photographers from the South American country will have been directed to abandon the match itself in the cause of capturing Maradona's every twitch, cough and spit during the 90 minutes of his maiden voyage.
Maradona's notoriety, the dark years as a cocaine and booze-fuelled physical and mental wreck, seems merely to have enhanced his celebration as a player whose authentic genius illuminated the game on a global scale.
Even members of the Tartan Army are likely to approach tonight's match with a certain ambiguity, desirous of a sound performance and good result for Scotland while wishing the opposing manager success in his new role.
George Burley, of course, cannot afford to share this conflict of emotions, the Scotland manager mindful solely of the need to exploit the occasion as the last opportunity to assess his players in action before the World Cup qualifying double-header away to the Netherlands and at home to Iceland at the end of March and the beginning of April.
"Maradona has created interest and that's great," said Burley. "But the media attention he has been given in the build-up to the match hasn't interfered with our focus.
"We have our own agenda, we know what we want to do in the match, and it will all be geared towards our meetings with Holland and Iceland in the spring."
Every football team is a continuous work in progress, never completed, but it could be said that Burley's has fallen behind schedule, thanks to the defeat in Macedonia and the draw with Norway at home that have left the Scots with just four points from their first three matches in Group 9 of the 2010 World Cup qualifying.
The manager conceded yesterday that the benefit to accrue from a meeting with Argentina would have to be general, rather than specific, in that it would be impossible to make a direct correlation between a friendly against the South Americans and a visit to Amsterdam for a competitive match against the group favourites.
Having confirmed that Barry Ferguson will return as captain, that Allan McGregor will replace the injured Craig Gordon in goal and that Chris Iwelumo will play in attack, Burley added: "In friendly matches, whoever you're playing, it's about looking at your own team, examining partnerships, seeing how players cope with all the examinations international football presents.
"If you're playing top-quality opponents, as we are, so much the better, the more you'll find out. I've had my team and the shape they'll play in my mind for a while and the call-offs we've had won't really change that. Yes, we've lost Darren Fletcher from midfield, but we had also lost Barry Ferguson for a long time and we've dealt with it and now Barry's back."
Burley's words suggested Ferguson will be a straight replacement for the Manchester United man and that he will minimise changes to the team which played the scoreless draw with Norway. With another midfielder who started the Norway game, James Morrison, also a casualty, it seems most likely that he will be replaced by Barry Robson.
Burley has decisions to make over the full-backs. Alan Hutton, now recovered from injury, is expected to regain the place on the right taken by his former Rangers team-mate, Kirk Broadfoot.
On the left, Burley has to choose from two players, Gary Naysmith and Jamie McAllister, who have not played for a month.
Burley dismisses the idea that the Scots could spend the night chasing shadows and, as a consequence of being comprehensively outplayed, sustain damage to their morale. "We can't worry about that kind of thing," he said.
"The only way we can compete with Argentina, or Holland for that matter, is by working harder than them. We won't do it by trying to match them in individual skills. One difference we would expect to see from the Norway game is more support in forward areas.
"Chris Iwelumo is very much in our plans. He gives us a target option we haven't had before and he can hold the ball and bring others in. Chris wasn't known as a natural scorer, but he's shown with Wolves this season that he can score goals all right – usually. Yes, he missed that great chance against Norway, but that was a one in a million thing and I'm sure it won't bother him."
http://sport.scotsman.com/sport/The-world39s-eyes-on-Maradona.4706877.jp
Celtic ball boy saves day for Maradona
By Rex Gowar
GLASGOW (Reuters) - Celtic ball boy Adam Brown was the surprise hero on Monday night, earning a big hug from Diego Maradona when Argentina's new coach took his first practice session.
A low-key workout by the squad as they prepared for Wednesday's friendly against Scotland at nearby Hampden Park ended with the stocky 48-year-old Maradona pacing Celtic's Parkhead turf looking for something in the grass.
His staff took part in the search for the lost item and a dozen ball boys formed a police-style cordon and walked down the pitch before Brown found it, a crucifix on a chain.
A joyous Maradona, who had been fairly quiet during the warm-up and a nine-a-side practice game which he refereed, bounded up to the ball boys and embraced Brown.
He then gave him his woolly hat in gratitude amid cheers from a few spectators in the stands.
Maradona made his customary sign of the cross as he left the pitch, bringing to an end Argentina's visit to Parkhead. The squad will practice behind closed doors at Hampden on Tuesday evening.
Celtic put a welcome message on their giant screen including a photo of a teenage Maradona when he inspired his country to a 3-1 victory over Scotland at Hampden in 1979.
Maradona, who will give a news conference at the team's hotel on Tuesday (1600 GMT), did not speak to reporters after practice.
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In brief
| Diego Maradona inherits an Argentine team which has made a poor start to the World Cup 2010 qualifiers. But there is abundant talent in the team. Now Maradona must inspire them, writes Brian Glanville. |
Perhaps it was written in the stars. That one day Diego Maradona, star of Argentinian stars, would emerge from his various travails and manage the national team which he had twice inspired to World Cup success. Diego himself says that he was surprised to be chosen. But he seems blessedly to have recovered from his enormous physical problems, much influenced by drugs, cured it seems in his Cuban sojourn, to emerge a far slimmer, more healthy figure.
To question his appointment on the grounds of lack of managerial experience would perhaps be mistaken.
After all he has been twice in charge of clubs, albeit only briefly. And other Titans of the game, Franz Beckenbauer and Jurgen Klinsmann of Germany, Michel Platini of France, were made managers of their national team with no managerial experience at all.
On the field, Maradona was beyond doubt a priceless inspiration to his Argentine teams. It is unthinkable that they would have won either of those World Cups without him. And he will start with the great advantage of being respected, even hero worshipped, by his players. But, as we well know, his temperament has always been explosive, his career however glittering was punctuated by episodes of violence and contention.
Still, he will have at his shoulder Carlos Bilardo, manager of the World Cup winning Argentine teams. The national manager who shrugged off the criticisms of the country’s President to win the World Cup in Mexico in 1986. A qualified research medical doctor, he was also the man who headed poor Nobby Stiles above the eye in the notorious World Club Cup match in Buenos Aires in 1968; a game if you can thus describe it which I saw. Stiles himself was, ironically, sent off for a trivial offence.
Maradona was a boy wonder, a star at 16 who, surprisingly, was at 17 left out of the Argentina 1978 World Cup squad by his mentor, Cesar “El Flaco” Menotti. Surely a mistake. Alonso, who filled Maradona’s spot, was competent enough, but given the fact that Argentina prevailed in their vital last qualifying pool match against Peru because they unquestionably bought the game, and given how very nearly they lost the final to Holland, you might think that Maradona even then might have made a difference.
Curiously, he didn’t make all that much four years later in Spain, though he was very much the victim in the match against Italy, in Barcelona, when he was continually obstructed by the notorious Claudio Gentile; who got away with it. It looked as if Maradona took out his frustration on the unfortunate Brazilian midfielder Batista in the ensuing game when a shocking foul had him sent off.
Mexico 1986, however, saw him scale heights as breathless as those on which, at the Azteca Stadium, the games were played. Both against England and in the subsequent match against Belgium he scored goals of dazzling solo virtuosity, spinning his way past man after man. Even if there were those who thought that the goal against England might have been somewhat conditioned by the fact that he had previously scored with the notorious ‘Hand of God’, punching the ball home when keeper Peter Shilton went for it. “The England team,” Gianni Melidoni, the Italian critic, told me, “were still in state of shock, like a man who has just had his wallet stolen.” There was no doubt however that Maradona was the shining inspiration of his team.
Leaving Argentina for Barcelona and Naples, he had his vertiginous ups and downs. In Spain, he was viciously kicked by a ruthless opponent, Andoni Goicoechea, and ruled out of the game for months. In Naples, where he was adored, and whom he enabled to win their first ever scudetto, he made dubious relations with the Camorra, the local Mafia, and was reportedly taking cocaine.
Back, subsequently, in Buenos Aires, his health deteriorated, his weight soared up and he was in trouble when he shot at journalists who were besieging his house. Yet, as though miraculously, there he was again in 1994 for the World Cup in the United States, playing as though he had never suffered his previous troubles. Until, after his team’s victory over Nigeria, a dope test showed that there were several types of ephedrine in his system and he was consequently packed off home, crying “conspiracy”; insisting that FIFA were taking revenge on him.
Episodes of violence have chequered his career. Not least in the days before the World Cup Final of 1990 in Rome when, at the Roma training camp of Trigoria, he and his brother viciously attacked a guard, after the brother had been pulled up, illicitly driving Maradona’s car. The other side of the coin saw Maradona struggling heroically and, in the match against Brazil, decisively, with a painfully injured ankle. He did manage to play in the torrid final against the Germans but he was plainly in dire straits.
I’ve met Maradona only once and it was a beguiling occasion, one which showed another side of this complex, gifted and impulsive man. The scene was the little stadium of an Italian C2 club, Latina, the town dug out of the swamps by Mussolini. Napoli came to play a friendly game against the local team and another C2 side in Civita Vecchia, each of whom played one half. Maradona, far from eliciting applause, trotted happily on to the field, pursued by a retinue of delighted small boys. He then proceeded to play the whole of the game, which few expected, enthralling the crowd with his shots and insidious free kicks.
Afterwards, I knocked on the door of the Napoli dressing room. It was opened by Maradona’s Press officer, Senor Blanco who reminded me we’d met in Buenos Aires in the office of the magazine, El Grafico. I told an amused Maradona that when a year earlier, I’d been at the same stadium it was to watch my 17-year-old son Toby play midfield for the Formia youth team against Latina. A pleasant meeting.
Maradona inherits an Argentine team which, as we know, has made a poor start to the World Cup 2010 qualifiers, falling seven points behind the leaders Paraguay, with whom they drew in Buenos Aires. But there is abundant talent in the team — the dazzling young Lionel Messi, whom Maradona recently criticised but who seems to have forgiven him, Sergio Aguero for whom Mark Hughes of Manchester City is prepared to shell out £35 million, Javier Mascherano. Now Maradona must inspire them.
http://www.sportstaronnet.com/stories/20081115503803000.htm
Diego Maradona
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Diego Armando Maradona | ||
 | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Diego Armando Maradona | |
| Date of birth | 30 October 1960 (1960-10-30) | |
| Place of birth | Lanus, Argentina | |
| Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) | |
| Playing position | Supporting striker, Attacking Midfielder | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| 1969–1976 | Argentinos Juniors | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1976–1981 1981–1982 1982–1984 1984–1991 1992–1993 1993 1995–1997 | Argentinos Juniors Boca Juniors Barcelona Napoli Sevilla Newell's Old Boys Boca Juniors Career | 166 0(116) 040 0(28) 058 0(38) 259 0(115) 029 00(7) 007 00(0) 031 00(7) 590 (311) |
| National team | ||
| 1977–1994 | Argentina | 091 0(34) |
| Teams managed | ||
| 1994 1995 2008– | Mandiyú de Corrientes Racing Club de Avellaneda Argentina | |
1 Senior club appearances and goals | ||
Diego Armando Maradona (born 30 October 1960) is an Argentine ex-football player, and coach of the Argentine national side. He shared the FIFA Player of the Century award with Pelé after finishing first in a FIFA internet poll on the best player of the 20th century. [1][2][3]
Over the course of his professsional club career Maradona played for Boca Juniors, FC Barcelona, and, most distinguishedly, SSC Napoli. In his international career, playing for Argentina, he earned 91 caps and scored 34 goals. He played in four FIFA World Cup tournaments, including the 1986 World Cup where he captained Argentina and led them to their victory over West Germany in the final, winning the Golden Ball award as the tournament's best player. In that same tournament's quarter-final round he scored two remarkable goals in a 2-1 victory over England which instantly cemented his fame. The first goal was an unpenalized handball known as the "Hand of God", while the second goal was a spectacular 60-metre weave through six England players, commonly referred to as "The Goal of the Century".
For various reasons, Maradona is considered one of the sport's most controversial and newsworthy figures. He was suspended from football for 15 months in 1991 after failing a doping test for cocaine in Italy, and he was sent home from the 1994 World Cup in the USA for using ephedrine.
After retiring from playing on his 37th birthday in 1997,[4] he increasingly suffered ill health and weight gain, hardly helped by ongoing cocaine abuse. In 2005 a stomach stapling operation helped control his weight gain. After overcoming his cocaine addiction, he became a popular TV host in Argentina.[5]
In October 2008, in a move which surprised many, Maradona was named as the new head coach of the Argentina national football team. He is scheduled to take control in December of 2008.[6]
[edit] Early years
Diego Armando Maradona was born in Lanus, but raised in Villa Fiorito, a shantytown on the southern outskirts of Buenos Aires,[7] to a poor family that had moved from Corrientes Province. He was the first son after three daughters. He has two younger brothers, Hugo (el Turco) and Eduardo (Lalo), both of whom were also professional football players.
At age 11, Maradona was spotted by a talent scout while he was playing in his neighborhood club Estrella Roja. He became a staple of Los Cebollitas (The Little Onions), the junior team of Buenos Aires's Argentinos Juniors. As a 12-year-old ball boy, he amused spectators by showing his wizardry with the ball during the halftime intermissions of first division games.[8]
[edit] Club career
20 October 1976, Maradona made his professional debut with Argentinos Juniors, only ten days before his sixteenth birthday.[4] He played there between 1976 and 1981, before his £1m transfer to Boca Juniors. Joining the squad midway through the 1981 season, Maradona played through 1982, and secured his first league winners' medal.
After the 1982 World Cup, in June, Maradona was transferred to FC Barcelona in Spain for a then world record £5m.[4] 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 de Bilbao. However, Maradona had a difficult tenure in Barcelona.[9] First a bout with hepatitis, then a broken leg caused by an ill-timed tackle by Athletic Bilbao's Andoni Goikoetxea jeopardized his career,[4] but Maradona's physical strength and willpower made it possible for him to soon be back on the pitch. At Barcelona Maradona got into frequent disputes with the team's directors, especially club president Josep Lluís Nuñez, and in 1984, he demanded a transfer out of Nou Camp. He was transferred to SSC Napoli in Italy's Serie A for another record fee, £6.9m.
In Napoli, Maradona reached the peak of his professional career. He quickly became an adored star among the club's fans, and in his time there he elevated the team to the most successful era in its history. Led by Maradona, Napoli won their only Italian Championships in 1986/87 and 1989/1990, placing second in the league twice, in 1987/88 and 1988/89. Other honors during the Maradona era at Napoli included the Coppa Italia in 1987, (second place in the Coppa Italia in 1989), the UEFA Cup in 1989 and the Italian Supercup in 1990. Maradona was the top scorer in Serie A in 1987/88.
However, during his time in Italy, Maradona's personal problems increased. His cocaine use continued, and he received US$ 70,000 in fines from his club for missing games and practices, ostensibly because of 'stress'. [10] He faced a scandal there regarding an illegitimate son; and he was also the object of some suspicion over an alleged friendship with the Camorra.[11]
After serving a 15-month ban for failing a drug test for cocaine, Maradona left Napoli in disgrace in 1992. By the time he joined his next team, Sevilla FC (1992-93), he had not played professional football for two years, and he would never again reach his previous heights. In 1993 he played for Newell's Old Boys and in 1995 he returned to Boca Juniors for 2 years.[4]
[edit] International career
Along with his time at Napoli, international football is where Maradona found his fame. Playing for the Albicelestes of the Argentina national football team, he participated in four consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments, leading Argentina to victory in 1986 and to second place in 1990.
He made his full international debut at age 16, against Hungary on 27 February 1977. At age 18, he played the Football World Youth Championship for Argentina, and was the star of the tournament, shining in their 3–1 final win over the Soviet Union. On 2 June 1979, Maradona scored his first senior international goal in a 3–1 win against Scotland at Hampden Park.[12]
[edit] 1982 World Cup
Maradona played his first World Cup tournament in 1982. In the first round, Argentina, the defending champions, lost to Belgium. Although the team convincingly beat Hungary and El Salvador to progress to the second round, they were defeated in the second round by Brazil and by eventual winners Italy. Maradona played in all five matches without being substituted, scoring twice against Hungary, but was sent off with 5 minutes remaining in the game against Brazil for serious foul play.
[edit] 1986 World Cup
Maradona captained the Argentine national team to victory in the 1986 FIFA World Cup, winning the final in Mexico against West Germany. Throughout the 1986 World Cup, Maradona asserted his dominance and was the most dynamic player of the tournament. He played every minute of every Argentina game, scored 5 goals and made 5 assists. However, it was the two goals he scored in a 2–1 quarter-final win against England which cemented his legend.
This particular match was played in the background of the Falklands war between those 2 very countries and emotions still were lingering in the air throughout the entire match. Replays showed that the first goal was scored by striking the ball with his hand. Maradona was coyly evasive, describing it as "a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God." The play became known as the "Hand of God," or "la mano de Dios." Ultimately, on 22 August 2005 Maradona later acknowledged on his television show that he had hit the ball with his hand purposely, and that he immediately knew the goal was illegitimate. However, the goal stood, much to the wrath of the England players.
Maradona's second goal was to be later voted by FIFA as the greatest goal in the history of the World Cup. He picked up the ball in his own half and with 11 touches swiveled around and ran more than half the length of the field, dribbling past five English players: (Glenn Hoddle, Peter Reid, Kenny Sansom, Terry Butcher, and Terry Fenwick) and goalkeeper Peter Shilton. This goal was voted the Goal of the Century in a 2002 online poll conducted by FIFA.
Maradona followed this with two more goals in the semi-final against Belgium, including another virtuoso dribbling display for the second goal. In the final, the opposing West German side attempted to contain him by double-marking, but he nevertheless found the space to give the final pass to Jorge Burruchaga for the winning goal. Argentina beat West Germany 3–2 in front of 115,000 spectators at the Azteca Stadium and Maradona lifted the World Cup trophy, ensuring that he would be remembered as one of the greatest names in football history. In a tribute to him, the Azteca Stadium authorities built a statue of him scoring the "goal of the century" and placed it at the entrance of the stadium.
[edit] 1990 World Cup
Maradona captained Argentina again in the 1990 FIFA World Cup. An ankle injury affected his overall performance, and he was much less dominant than four years earlier. Argentina were almost eliminated in the first round, only qualifying in third position from their group. In the round of 16 match against Brazil, Claudio Caniggia scored the only goal after being set up by Maradona.
In the quarter final, Argentina faced Yugoslavia, the match ending 0–0 after 120 minutes, and Argentina advancing on penalty kicks, despite Maradona missing one of the penalties in the shootout with a weak shot at the centre of the goal. The semifinal against the host nation Italy was also resolved on penalties after a 1–1 draw; this time, Maradona was successful with his effort, daringly placing the ball at the exact same spot as his missed penalty in the previous round. In the final, Argentina lost 1–0 to West Germany, the only goal being a penalty by Andreas Brehme in the 85th minute after a controversial foul on Rudi Völler.
[edit] 1994 World Cup
At the 1994 FIFA World Cup Maradona played in only two games, scoring one goal against Greece, before being sent home after failing a drug test for ephedrine doping. In his autobiography, Maradona argued that the test result was due to his personal trainer giving him the power drink Rip Fuel. His claim was that the U.S. version, unlike the Argentine one, contained the chemical and that, having run out of his Argentinian dosage, his trainer unwittingly bought the U.S. formula. FIFA subsequently expelled him from USA '94 and Argentina were subsequently eliminated in the second round. Maradona has also separately claimed that he had an agreement with FIFA, on which the organization reneged, to allow him to use the drug for weight loss before the competition in order to be able to play.[13] According to Maradona, this was so that the World Cup would not lose prestige because of his absence. This allegation has never been proven.
[edit] Playing style
- See also: Argentine Football Creole Style
Maradona had a compact physique and could withstand physical pressure well. His strong legs and low center of gravity gave him an advantage in short sprints. His physical strengths were illustrated by his two goals against Belgium in the 1986 World Cup. Maradona was a strategist and a team player, as well as highly technical with the ball. He could manage himself effectively in limited spaces, and would attract defenders only to quickly dash out of the melee (as in the second 1986 goal against England),[14] or give an assist to a free teammate. Being short, but strong, he could hold the ball long enough with a defender on his back to wait for a teammate making a run or to find a gap for a quick shot.
One of Maradona's trademark moves was dribbling full-speed as a left wing, and on reaching the opponent's goal line, delivering lethally accurate passes to his teammates. Another trademark was the Rabona, a reverse-cross pass shot behind the leg that holds all the weight. This maneuver led to several assists, such as the powerful cross for Ramón Díaz's header in the 1980 friendly against Switzerland. He was also a dangerous free kick taker.
[edit] Retirement and honours
In 2000, Maradona published his autobiography Yo Soy El Diego ("I am The Diego"), which became an instant bestseller[15] in his home country. Two years later, Maradona donated the Cuban royalties of his book to "the Cuban people and Fidel."[16]
FIFA conducted a fan poll on the Internet in 2000, to elect the Player of the Century. Maradona finished top of the poll with 53.6% of the vote. Subsequently, however, and contrary to the original announcement of how the award would be decided, FIFA appointed a "Football Family" committee of football experts that voted to award Pelé the title. Maradona protested at the change in procedure, and declared he would not attend the ceremony if Pelé replaced him. Eventually, two awards were made, one to each of the pair. Maradona accepted his prize, but left the ceremony without waiting to see Pelé receive his accolade.[2]
In 2001, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) asked FIFA for authorization to retire the jersey number 10 for Maradona. FIFA did not grant the request, even though Argentine officials have maintained that FIFA hinted that it would.[17]
Maradona has won other fan polls, including a 2002 FIFA poll in which his second goal against England was chosen as the best goal ever scored in a World Cup; he also won the most votes in a poll to determine the All-Time Ultimate World Cup Team.
Argentinos Juniors named its stadium after Maradona, 26 December 2003.
22 June 2005, it was announced that Maradona would return to Boca Juniors as a sports vice president in charge of managing the First Division roster (after a disappointing 2004–05 season, which coincided with Boca's centenary).[18] His contract began 1 August 2005, and one of his first recommendations proved to be very effective: he was the one who decided to hire Alfio Basile as the new coach. With Maradona fostering a close relationship with the players, Boca went on to win the 2005 Apertura title, the 2006 Clausura title, the 2005 Copa Sudamericana and the 2005 Recopa Sudamericana.
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. 10"). His main guest on opening night was Pelé; the two had a friendly chat, showing no signs of past differences. However, the show also included a cartoon villain with a clear physical resemblance to Pelé. In subsequent evenings, he led the ratings on all occasions but one. Most guests were drawn from the worlds of football and show business, including Zidane, Ronaldo and Hernán Crespo, but also included interviews with other notable personalities such as Fidel Castro and Mike Tyson.
26 August 2006, it was announced that Maradona was quitting his position in the club Boca Juniors because of disagreements with the AFA, who selected Basile to be the new coach of the Argentina National Football Team.[19]
The award-winning Serbian filmmaker Emir Kusturica made a documentary about Maradona's life, entitled Maradona.
In September 2006, Maradona, in his famous blue and white number 10, was the captain for Argentina in a three-day World Cup of Indoor Football tournament in Spain.
In 2006, Diego Maradona was appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador of the Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina Against Malnutrition, IIMSAM.[20]
[edit] Managerial Career
[edit] Club management
He attempted to work as a coach on two short stints, leading Mandiyú of Corrientes (1994) and Racing Club (1995), but without much success.
[edit] International management
In 2008, following the resignation of Argentina national football team coach Alfio Basile. Maradona immediately proposed his candidacy for the vacant role. According to several press sources, his major challengers included Diego Simeone, Carlos Bianchi, Miguel Ángel Russo and Sergio Batista. On October 29 2008, AFA chairman Julio Grondona confirmed that Maradona would be the head coach of the national side from December 2008.[21]
[edit] Personal life
Maradona married long-time fiancée Claudia Villafañe on November 7, 1989 in Buenos Aires, after the birth of their daughters, Dalma Nerea (b. 1987) and Giannina Dinorah (b. 1989). In his autobiography, Maradona admits he was not always faithful to Claudia, even though he refers to her as the love of his life.
Maradona and Villafañe divorced in 2004. Daughter Dalma has since asserted that the divorce was the best solution for all, as her parents remained on friendly terms. They traveled together to Napoli for a series of homages in June 2005[22] and were seen together on many other occasions, including the Argentina matches during 2006 FIFA World Cup.
During the divorce proceedings, Maradona admitted he was the father of Diego Sinagra (b. Naples, 1986), as was claimed by the youth's mother Cristiana Sinagra. (The Italian courts had so ruled in 1993, after Maradona refused to undergo DNA tests for proving or disproving his paternity.) Diego Jr. met Maradona for the first time in May 2003 after tricking his way onto a golf course in Naples where Maradona was playing.[23]
After the divorce, Claudia embarked on a career as a theatre producer, and Dalma is seeking an acting career; she has expressed her desire to attend the Actor's Studio in Los Angeles.[24][25] Maradona has authored an autobiography entitled "Yo Soy El Diego" chronicling his life, both on and off the playing field. His autobiography was translated and published in English as Maradona: The Autobiography of Soccer's Greatest and Most Controversial Star. (ISBN 1602390274)
[edit] Drug abuse and health situation
From the mid-1980s until 2004 Diego Maradona was addicted to cocaine. He allegedly began using the drug in Barcelona in 1983. [26] By the time he was playing for Napoli he had a regular addiction, which began to interfere with his ability to play football. "The New York Times: SOCCER; Maradona Sentenced" (1991-19-09).
Over the years following his retirement his health seriously deteriorated. Maradona had a tendency to put on weight, and suffered increasingly from obesity from the end of his playing career until undergoing gastric bypass surgery in a clinic in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia on 6 March 2005. When Maradona resumed public appearances shortly thereafter, he displayed a notably thinner figure.
18 April 2004, doctors reported that Maradona had suffered a major heart attack following a cocaine overdose; he was admitted to intensive care in a Buenos Aires hospital. Scores of fans gathered around the clinic. Days after the heart attack, a nurse was caught taking photos of Maradona with a mobile phone and was promptly fired by the hospital managers.[citation needed]
Fortunately he showed improvement and was taken off the respirator 23 April and remained in intensive care for several days before being discharged, 29 April. He returned to Cuba, where he had spent most of his time in the years leading up to the heart attack, in May.
29 March 2007, Maradona was readmitted to a hospital in Buenos Aires. He was treated for hepatitis and effects of alcohol abuse, and was released on 11 April, but re-admitted two days later.[27] In the following days there were constant rumors about his health, including three false claims of his death within a month.[28] After transfer to a psychiatric clinic specialising in alcohol-related problems, he was discharged on May 7.[29]
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.[30]
[edit] Political views
During the nineties, Diego Maradona supported the presidency of Carlos Menem in Argentina. In more recent years, Maradona has shown more sympathy to left-wing ideologies. He became friends with Fidel Castro while in treatment in Cuba. He has a portrait of Castro tattooed on his left leg and one of Ernesto "Che" Guevara on his right arm.[31]
Maradona is also a supporter of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. In 2005 he visited Venezuela with the specific aim of meeting Chávez, who received him in Miraflores. After this meeting Maradona claimed that he had come with the aim of meeting a "great man" ("un grande" in Spanish) but he had met instead a gigantic man ("un gigante" in Spanish, meaning he was more than great).
"I believe in Chávez, I am Chavista. Everything Fidel does, everything Chávez does, for me is the best."[32]
He has declared his opposition to imperialism, notably during the 2005 Summit of the Americas in Mar del Plata, Argentina. There he protested George W. Bush's presence in Argentina, wearing a T-shirt labeled "STOP BUSH" and referring to Bush as "human garbage".[33][34]
In August 2007, Maradona went further, making an appearance on Chávez's weekly television show and saying: "I hate everything that comes from the United States. I hate it with all my strength." [35]
In December 2007, Maradona presented a signed shirt with a message of support to the people of Iran: it is to be displayed in the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs' museum. [36]
[edit] Reputation
Ever since 1986, it is common for Argentines abroad to hear Maradona's name as a token of recognition, even in remote places.[9] The Tartan Army sing a version of the Hokey Cokey in honour of the Hand of God goal against England.[37] In Argentina, Maradona is often talked about in terms reserved for legends. In the Argentine film El Hijo de la Novia ("The bride's son"), an actor who plays a fake Catholic priest says to a bar patron: "they idolized him and then crucified him". When scolded by a friend for taking the prank too far, the fake priest retorts: "But I was talking about Maradona".
In Rosario city, Argentina, fans organized the "Church of Maradona." Maradona's 43rd birthday in 2003 marked the start of the Year 43 D.D. - "Después de Diego" or After Diego - for its founding 200 members. Tens of thousands more[38] have become members via the church's official web site.
Hounded for years by the press, Maradona once fired a compressed-air rifle at reporters who, so he claimed, were invading his privacy. This quote from former teammate Jorge Valdano summarizes the feelings of many:
| “ | He is someone many people want to emulate, a controversial figure, loved, hated, who stirs great upheaval, especially in Argentina... Stressing his personal life is a mistake. Maradona has no peers inside the pitch, but he has turned his life into a show, and is now living a personal ordeal that should not be imitated. [39] | ” |
A television commercial for Brazilian soft drink Guaraná Antarctica portrayed Maradona as a member of the Brazilian national football team, including wearing the yellow jersey and singing the Brazilian national anthem with Brazilian caps Kaká and Ronaldo. Later on in the commercial he wakes up realizing it was nightmare after having drank too much of the soft drink. This generated some controversy in the Argentine media after its release (although the commercial was not supposed to air on the Argentine market, fans could see it via internet). Maradona replied that he has no problem in wearing the Brazilian national squad jersey, instead, only in wearing River Plate's jersey "Maradona diz não se arrepender de usar camisa do Brasil na TV". AdNews. Retrieved on 2008-08-14..
In May 2006, Maradona agreed to take part in UK's Soccer Aid (a program to raise money for Unicef). Maradona scored a penalty but it was too late to save the match which England won 2-1.[40]
[edit] Career statistics
[edit] Club
- His overall average of goals scored per match in domestic club competitions is 0.53.
[edit] International
- Started in 21 consecutive matches for Argentina in four World Cups (1982, 1986, 1990, 1994)
- Appeared a World Cup-record 16 times as captain of the national team.
- Scored 8 goals and made 8 assists in 21 World Cup appearances, including 5 goals and 5 assists in 1986
- Tied for second-highest goal-scorer from Argentina in World Cup finals (equaled Guillermo Stabile's mark in 1994; surpassed by Gabriel Batistuta in 1998)
[edit] Statistics
[edit] Club
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Argentina | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 1976 | Argentinos Juniors | Primera División | 11 | 2 | - | - | 11 | 2 | ||
| 1977 | 49 | 19 | - | - | 49 | 19 | ||||
| 1978 | 35 | 25 | - | - | 35 | 25 | ||||
| 1979 | 27 | 26 | - | - | 27 | 26 | ||||
| 1980 | 45 | 43 | - | - | 45 | 43 | ||||
| 1981 | Boca Juniors | Primera División | 40 | 28 | - | - | 40 | 28 | ||
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 1982–83 | Barcelona | La Liga | 20 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 29 | 19 |
| 1983–84 | 16 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 23 | 15 | ||
| Italy | League | Coppa Italia | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 1984–85 | Napoli | Serie A | 30 | 14 | 6 | 3 | - | 36 | 17 | |
| 1985–86 | 29 | 11 | 2 | 2 | - | 31 | 13 | |||
| 1986–87 | 29 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 17 | ||
| 1987–88 | 28 | 15 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 21 | ||
| 1988–89 | 26 | 9 | 12 | 7 | 12 | 3 | 50 | 19 | ||
| 1989–90 | 28 | 16 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 36 | 18 | ||
| 1990–91 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 25 | 10 | ||
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 1992–93 | Sevilla | La Liga | 26 | 5 | 3 | 3 | - | 29 | 8 | |
| Argentina | League | Cup | South America | Total | ||||||
| 1993–94 | Newell's Old Boys | Primera División | 7 | 0 | - | - | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1995–96 | Boca Juniors | Primera División | 11 | 3 | - | - | 11 | 3 | ||
| 1996–97 | 13 | 2 | - | - | 13 | 2 | ||||
| 1997–98 | 6 | 2 | - | - | 6 | 2 | ||||
| Total | Argentina | 240 | 150 | - | - | 240 | 150 | |||
| Spain | 62 | 27 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 81 | 42 | ||
| Italy | 188 | 81 | 54 | 29 | 25 | 5 | 267 | 115 | ||
| Career Total | 490 | 258 | 66 | 36 | 32 | 13 | 588 | 321 | ||
[edit] National team
[edit] Honours
[edit] Club
Boca Juniors - Primera División: 1981
FC Barcelona - Copa del Rey: 1983
- Copa de la Liga: 1983
- Spanish Super Cup: 1983
- Copa del Rey: 1983
SSC Napoli - Serie A: 1987, 1990
- Coppa Italia: 1987
- Capocannoniere: 1988
- UEFA Cup: 1989
- Italian Super Cup: 1990
- Serie A: 1987, 1990
[edit] Country
- Argentina
- FIFA World Youth Championship: 1979
- FIFA World Cup:
- Artemio Franchi Trophy: 1993
- 75th anniversary FIFA Cup: 1979
- FIFA World Youth Championship: 1979
[edit] Individual
- Golden Ball for Best Player of the FIFA U-20 World Cup: 1979
- Argentine league Top Scorer: 1979, 1980, 1981
- Argentine Football Writers' Footballer of the Year: 1979, 1980, 1981, 1986
- South American Footballer of the Year (El Mundo, Caracas):1979, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1992
- Argentine Sports Writers' Sportsman of the Year: 1986
- Golden Ball for Best Player of the FIFA World Cup: 1986
- Best Footballer in the World (Once): 1986 — 1987
- World Player of the Year (World Soccer Magazine): 1986
- Serie A Top Scorer: 1987/1988
- Golden Ball for services to football (France Football): 1996
- Argentine Sports Writers' Sportsman of the Century: 1999
- "FIFA best football player of the century", people's choice: 2000
- "FIFA Goal of the Century" (1986 (2–1) v. England; second goal): 2002
- Argentine Senate "Domingo Faustino Sarmiento" recognition for lifetime achievement: 2005
[edit] References
- ^ BBC - "cyber-blitz by Maradona fans in Internet Poll"
- ^ a b CNNSI - "Split decision: Pelé, Maradona each win FIFA century awards after feud" Last retrieved May 30, 2006
- ^ However, it should be mentioned that Pelé and numerous FIFA officials criticised the poll for a number of methodological shortcomings, most notably, for the 'recency effect'. In a separate survey conducted by the IFFHS, Maradona placed 5th best player of the century, behind fellow countryman Alfredo Di Stefano.
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