Adieu, Diego Maradona
Diego Armando Maradona is no more. It is incorrect to suggest that great men are the architects of the world; gifted men are. The little master was one such gifted man. With his painful departure, a part of the throbbing heart of the great game of football has also died. The second law of thermodynamics must hang its head in shame for taking away the life of a man of such extraordinary talent as Maradona. It can be said with certainty that he did not choose to play football; football selected him to be its eternal benefactor!
Inside a football stadium, Maradona was a magician: the lifeless but mercurial air-filled leather sphere otherwise known as the football either clung to him as if he were a powerful magnet or danced ecstatically to his glorious tunes. Invariably, they were in perfect sync. They were born for each other. Nay, they were the two sides of the same coin: Maradona was football and football was Maradona.
Karl Rummenigge, a West German football legend, once stated that Maradona was the greatest ever, better even than Pele. It is difficult to dispute this claim on rational grounds. The International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS), an organisation that chronicles the history and records of association football, bestowed upon Maradona “the player of the century” award in Rome at the annual FIFA World gala in December, 2000. As the 20th century came to an end, FIFA decided to have a vote to elect the player of the century by conducting an online poll and Maradona won it by a massive margin. He defeated giants like Pele, Gérson de Oliveira Nunes, Waldyr Pereira Didi, Johan Cryuff, Edvaldo Jizídio Neto Vava and several other formidable footballers. Subsequently, FIFA made a controversial decision to split the award and announced Pele and Maradona as the two greatest players of all time. This was understandably resented by countless football fans. His incredible second goal against England at the 1986 FIFA World Cup held in Mexico was voted the “FIFA World Cup Goal of the Century” in a poll hosted in 2002.
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on October 30, 1960, the prodigiously talented Maradona initially played for a youth team named Los Cebollitas of Argentinos Juniors and then made his debut as a senior at the age of 16. He never looked back. Maradona epitomised skill, dexterity, subtlety, creativity, bravery and passion. He was flamboyant, brash and spontaneous and consistently demonstrated a streak of adorable mischievousness. He had the rare ability to change the entire complexion of the game in the blink of an eye. With him on the field, the 10 remaining players of his team simply immersed themselves en masse into his towering presence. Such was the power of the 20th century’s greatest footballer that he could effortlessly turn the game into a one-man show.
Maradona was like a guided missile that hurtled through his flustered, nervous and terrified opponents. Their body language said it all — it was impossible to stop him. In the midst of a bevy of defenders, he could magically grab the ball and then stick to it like glue. He needed less than a foot of a chink in the great walls his opponents erected in his way to pass through. A superb dribbler, he could whiz, waltz, rush, dash and zoom past, through and around the many defenders that tried to stop him. He was unpredictable and no one knew from which angle he would fire the ball into the net.
Lionel Messi, arguably the greatest 21st century footballer, wrote on Instagram, “He has left us but he will never leave us because Diego is eternal. I will keep all the beautiful moments that I lived with him and would like to send my condolences to all his family and friends. RIP.” Diego Armando Maradona is, indeed, eternal.