WEB DESK
One of the greatest football players of all time Diego Maradona passed away at the age of 60 his spokesman announced Wednesday.
Maradona was captain when Argentina won the 1986 World Cup, producing a series of sublime individual performances.
Earlier this month, Maradona left hospital having undergone surgery to remove a blood clot on his brain, with his lawyer Matias Morla saying it was a “miracle” that the clot “which could have taken his life, was detected.”
In the last 20 years, Maradona has been admitted to hospital three times for serious health concerns due to drug and alcohol addiction. Recently, due to COVID-19, he had been forced to isolate at home.
He played for Barcelona and Napoli during his club career, winning two Serie A titles with the Italian side.
Maradona scored 34 goals in 91 appearances for Argentina, representing them in four World Cups.
He led his country to the 1990 final in Italy, where they were beaten by West Germany, before captaining them again in the United States in 1994, but was sent home after failing a drugs test for ephedrine.
During the second half of his career, Maradona struggled with cocaine addiction and was banned for 15 months after testing positive for the drug in 1991.
He retired from professional football in 1997, on his 37th birthday, during his second stint at Argentine giants Boca Juniors.
Having briefly managed two sides in Argentina during his playing career, Maradona was appointed head coach of the national team in 2008 and left after the 2010 World Cup, where his side were beaten by Germany in the quarter-finals.
Football icon
Maradona was widely considered one of the greatest players of all time, particularly for his skill with the ball at his feet.
He played for Argentina 91 times, scoring 34 goals, and was a member of the 1986 World Cup winning team in Mexico.
It was at that tournament where he scored both his most famous and infamous international goals, with the latter going on to be known as the “Hand of God,” when he scored against England by striking the ball with his hand.
He retired from competitive football at the age of 37 in 1997.
In October 2008, Maradona was named head coach of Argentina’s national team, taking them to the quarter finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where they lost 4-0 to Germany.