Diego Maradona
Argentine football player
Diego Maradona Rank
About Diego Maradona
Diego Maradona was an Argentine football player and manager. He played as a striker for Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli and the national team of Argentina, among others. He was known mainly for his superior ability in terms of ball control, passing, and dribbling. He was also a great free-kick specialist.
His Highlights/Legacy
He won the Argentine Primera División, a Supercopa de España, a UEFA Europa League, a FIFA World Youth Championship and a FIFA World Cup. He was also named World Player of the Year many times and he is widely regarded as the greatest football player of all time, along with Brazilian legend, Pelé.
Managerial Career
His career as a football manager began in 1994 at the Argentine football club named, Textil Mandiyú. There, he worked alongside Carlos Fren, who was his former teammate at the football club, Argentinos Juniors.
In October of 2008, he was unveiled as the head coach of his country’s national team. His first game in charge was against Scotland – the match ended in a 1-0 victory for Argentina.
He led his country to the quarter-finals stage at the 2010 FIFA World Cup that took place in South Africa. They were kicked out of the tournament after losing to Germany by 4-0.
As Argentina’s head coach, Maradona managed great footballers like Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Aguero.
Parents & Siblings
He was the son of Diego Maradona Snr and Dalma Franco. His mum passed away in November 2011 and his dad, in June of 2015.
He was an elder brother to six siblings including professional footballers, Raúl and Hugo.
His Personal Life
He had Italian, Croatian and Spanish ancestry. Between 1984 and 2004, the Argentine genius was married to Claudia Villafañe and had 2 children with her, namely Dalma and Gianinna.
For more than 20 years, he was a cocaine addict.
Maradona’s Famous “Hand of God" and “Goal of the Century” Goals
Maradona is also famous for scoring the first goal, dubbed “Hand of God' goal, against England at the quarter-finals of the FIFA 1986 World Cup tournament, which was held in Mexico. The goal, in which he scored using his hand, came in the 51st minute of the game.
Maradona went on to score another historical goal four minutes later. This time around he exhibited his outstanding dribbling techniques when he went past five English players and also dribbled past goalkeeper, Peter Shilton to score an absolutely amazing individual goal. The goal has been described as the “Goal of the Century”.
The match ended with Argentina winning by 2-1, with English striker, Gary Lineker scoring a consolation goal in the 81st minute.
Height
Stature-wise, the legendary footballer was not the biggest player on the field during his playing days – he stood at 5 ft 5 in tall.
Health Issues
Maradona suffered a lot from alcohol and drug-related problems. For instance, he battled severe obesity after hanging his boots. He underwent a gastric bypass surgery and was put on a three month liquid diet to correct the situation.
At the beginning of 2019, he underwent surgery to correct a hernia-related internal bleeding situation in his stomach.
Death
The football genius passed away on 25th November 2020 as a result of cardiac arrest. Few weeks before his demise, he had undergone a surgery to correct a type of brain bleed called Subdural hematoma.
Facts
His last managerial work was at the Argentine football club Gimnasia de La Plata – he was appointed as the club’s manger in 2019 and continued to work in that capacity until his sudden demise.
He featured in four different FIFA World Cup tournaments, making his debut in Spain 1982.
His debut for his nation’s senior national team happened in 1977. He retired from international football in 1994 after starring 91 times for Argentina – during those games he scored 34 goals.
He derived inspiration from football greats such as Northern Irish and Manchester United’s legendary winger, George Best.
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F.A.Q. about Diego Maradona
When is his birthday?
Diego Maradona's birthday is on October 30, 1960.
In how many days is his birthday?
Diego's birthday is in 357 days
How old was Diego when he died?
He was 60 years old.
When did he die?
He died in November 25, 2020.
How old would he be today?
Diego Maradona would be 64 years old if he was alive today.
Where was Diego from?
He was born in Villa Fiorito, Lanús, Buenos Aires.
What was Diego Maradona's height?
He was 5′ 5″ (1.65m) tall.