Football icon Diego Maradona has passed away at the age of 60. The Argentine sportsman died of a heart attack at his home in Tigre yesterday, November 25, where he was recovering from recent brain surgery.
Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez has declared three days of national mourning in honor of the 1986 World Cup-winning captain. Maradona is widely regarded as one of the best players of his generation, and of all-time, and with the news of his passing thousands of tributes have poured in from across the world.
“A very sad day for all Argentinians and for football,” said Argentina and Barcelona captain Lionel Messi. “He has left us but he isn’t going anywhere because Diego is eternal. I’ll remember the lovely moments I experienced with him and I send my condolences to his family and friends. Rest in peace,” he added.
With legendary talent, Maradona was given the nickname “El Pibe de Oro”, meaning “The Golden Kid”, which stuck with him for the majority of his career, playing for Argentina’s national team and clubs Napoli and Barcelona. Perhaps best known for his career-high of winning the 1986 World Cup with Argentina, where he won the Golden Ball award for the best player in the tournament, Maradona became a living legend for his two goals in Argentina’s 2-1 victory against England in the quarter-finals. The first goal, infamously named the “Hand of God” goal, saw an unpenalized handling foul from Maradona which took Argentina to a 1-0 lead, whereas the second goal has often been recognized as one of the greatest goals of all-time, voted “Goal of the Century” by Fifa voters in 2002.
His later career saw him manage Argentina’s national team from 2008 to 2010, as well as coaching Dubai-based club Al-Wasl in the UAE Pro-League for the 2011-12 season and Fujairah FC in 2017.
In memory of the GOAT, enjoy some of Diego Maradona‘s sporting moments in the gallery above.
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