Diego Maradona

Diego Maradona

Maradona after winning the 1986 FIFA World Cup with Argentina
Personal information
Full name	Diego Armando Maradona Franco[1]
Date of birth	(1960-10-30)30 October 1960
Place of birth	Lanús, Argentina
Date of death	25 November 2020(2020-11-25) (aged 60)
Place of death	Dique Luján, Argentina
Height	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)[2]
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder, second striker
Youth career
1969–1976	Argentinos Juniors
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1976–1981	Argentinos Juniors	166	(116)
1981–1982	Boca Juniors	40	(28)
1982–1984	Barcelona	36	(22)
1984–1991	Napoli	188	(81)
1992–1993	Sevilla	26	(5)
1993–1994	Newell's Old Boys	5	(0)
1995–1997	Boca Juniors	30	(7)
Total		491	(259)
International career
1977–1979	Argentina U20	15	(8)
1977–1994	Argentina	91	(34)
Managerial career
1994	Deportivo Mandiyú
1995	Racing Club
2008–2010	Argentina
2011–2012	Al-Wasl
2013–2017	Deportivo Riestra (assistant)
2017–2018	Fujairah
2018–2019	Dorados de Sinaloa
2019–2020	Gimnasia de La Plata
Medal record Men's football Representing  Argentina FIFA World Cup Winner 1986 Mexico Runner-up 1990 Italy Copa América 1989 Brazil Finalissima Winner 1993 Argentina FIFA U-20 World Cup Winner 1979 Japan South American U-20 Championship Runner-up 1979 Uruguay
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

This article is part of a series about Diego Maradona
Argentine professional footballer International goals The hand of God Goal of the Century Comparisons to Pelé New Maradona Eponyms and public art Estadio Diego Armando Maradona Stadio Diego Armando Maradona Estadio Único Diego Armando Maradona Sistine Chapel of Football Films El camino de San Diego (2006) Maradona, the Hand of God (2007) In the Hands of the Gods (2007) Maradona by Kusturica (2008) I Am Diego Maradona (2015) Diego Maradona (2019) Media Maradona in Mexico (2019) Maradona: Blessed Dream (2021) Family Diego Sinagra Hugo Maradona Raúl Maradona Hernán López Related Iglesia Maradoniana "Maradona (kesä '86)" Peter Shilton's Handball Maradona (1986)
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Diego Armando Maradona Franco (Spanish: [ˈdjeɣo maɾaˈðona]; 30 October 1960 – 25 November 2020) was an Argentine professional football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the 20th Century award, alongside Pelé.

An advanced playmaker who operated in the classic number 10 position, Maradona's vision, passing, ball control, and dribbling skills were combined with his small stature, which gave him a low centre of gravity and allowed him to manoeuvre better than most other players. 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 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 Boy"), a name that stuck with him throughout his career.

Maradona was the first player to set the world record transfer fee twice: in 1982 when he transferred to Barcelona for £5 million, and in 1984 when he moved to Napoli for a fee of £6.9 million. He played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys during his club career, and is most famous for his time at Napoli where he won numerous accolades and led the club to Serie A title wins twice. Maradona also had a troubled off-field life and his time with Napoli ended after he was banned for taking cocaine.

In his international career with Argentina, he earned 91 caps and scored 34 goals. Maradona played in four FIFA World Cups, including the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, where he captained Argentina and led them to victory over West Germany in the final, and won the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player. In the 1986 World Cup quarter final, he scored both goals in a 2–1 victory over England that entered football history for two different reasons. The first goal was an unpenalized handling foul known as the "Hand of God", while the second goal followed a 60 m (66 yd) dribble past five England players, voted "Goal of the Century" by FIFA.com voters in 2002.

Maradona became the coach of Argentina's national football team in November 2008. He was in charge of the team at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa before leaving at the end of the tournament. He then coached Dubai-based club Al Wasl in the UAE Pro-League for the 2011–12 season. In 2017, Maradona became the coach of Fujairah before leaving at the end of the season. In May 2018, Maradona was announced as the new chairman of Belarusian club Dynamo Brest. He arrived in Brest and was presented by the club to start his duties in July. From September 2018 to June 2019, Maradona was coach of Mexican club Dorados. He was the coach of Argentine Primera División club Gimnasia de La Plata from September 2019 until his death in 2020. He was ranked as the third best all time football player by FourFourTwo.^[3]