Diego Armando Maradona Franco, the Argentine football legend who scored the “Hand of God” goal during the 1986 FIFA World Cup, has passed away after a heart attack at the age of 60.
The Argentinian superstar had been recovering at his home in Tigre after undergoing brain surgery at the beginning of November. On Wednesday, he suffered cardiac arrest, and paramedics at the scene failed to revive him.
Maradona’s spokesman, Sebastián Sanchi has confirmed his passing away and said he died on Wednesday of a heart attack. Two weeks ago, he underwent brain surgery to remove a blood clot on his brain at the La Plata clinic in Buenos Aires.
Maradona is considered one of the greatest football players of all time. He led Argentina to a World Cup title in 1986 and won the Serie A title during the 1989-90 season.
Maradona has suffered a series of health issues since his retirement in 1997. He was admitted to the hospital in 2019 with internal bleeding and in 2018 passed out at the World Cup in Russia. In 2004, he was hospitalized with heart and respiratory problems and also underwent two gastric bypass surgeries. He has also received treatment for alcohol and drug abuse.
The office of Argentina’s president has decreed three days of national mourning. TheArgentine Football Association – AFA expressed its sorrow on Twitter.
Tribute has been pouring in on Twitter for the man considered one of the greatest football of all times
Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Maradona was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the 20th Century award. Maradona’s vision, passing, ball control and dribbling skills were combined with his small stature (1.65 metres (5 ft 5 in)), which gave him a low centre of gravity allowing him to manoeuvre better than most other football players; he would often dribble past multiple opposing players on a run. His presence and leadership on the field had a great effect on his team’s general performance, while he would often be singled out by the opposition. In addition to his creative abilities, he also possessed an eye for goal and was known to be a free-kick specialist. A precocious talent, Maradona was given the nickname “El Pibe de Oro” (“The Golden Kid”), a name that stuck with him throughout his career.
– Wikipedia
