The hand of God.

Before there was Messi, Ronaldo and the endless debate over which one was ‘The GOAT’, there was Diego Armando Maradona.

If ever there was a player more worthy of the title ‘Flawed Genius’ I don’t know who that would be.

In trouble on an off the pitch throughout the 80’s and beyond he developed a severe cocaine addiction that led to major fluctuations in his weight and ultimately to ridicule and disgrace.

Growing up I knew Maradona for mostly one thing as an Englishman. The Hand of God and how he had surely cheated us out of a potential Word Cup victory. Of course for this to be true you would have to completely ignore the amazing solo goal he scored in that very same game where he literally slalomed past what appeared be the majority of our team.

I have watched several documentaries on Maradona over the years along with a film recently which captured the jubilation of an entire city in Italy when he signed for their team in Naples.

There is almost no hyperbole when I say that the reaction to Maradona signing for Napoli in July of 1984 was akin to that if Jesus Christ himself had stepped off the plane that day. This was the 2nd time he had gone for a World Record fee (£6.9m) with the first being Barcelona in 82.

Maradona was born of a different era. In those days if you couldn’t beat them by fair play then you resorted to extreme foul play. During the footage I have seen of him he was cut down without prejudice time and again. He would skip past or 2 or 3 players and then bang….taken out.

The fact that he still managed to make so many of them look silly is truly remarkable.

A total of 159 goals in 343 appearances, 103 assists, 5 golden boots, 4 player of the year trophies, 2 Scudettos, a UEFA Cup and a World Cup don’t tell the full story. He was capped 91 times and scored 34 International goals.

That he managed to drag a distinctly average Argentine team over the line in 86 is what separates him from many of the great players of the past.

After retirement Maradona moved into International management with his beloved Argentina where he is still revered before moving into club management.

But it’s as a player he is most remembered by those who watched him.

On 25 Nov 2020 time was called and his number was up. He suffered a cardiac arrest at the age of 60 and died in his sleep.

Who can truly say which player is better, Ronaldo, Messi, Maradona, Pele or player x. One thing is for sure, had Maradona played in the same era as those others he would definitely be in the conversation.