maradona
How can one describe Diego Armando Maradona (to fully do him justice)?
Genius?
Artist?
Revolutionary?
Provocateur?
Yes, he was certainly all those things. But, it still does not fully and holistically get to the heart of the Man/Player himself.
I remember first hearing about him in the early 1980s (circa 1980/1981).
His name being spoken about with hushed reverence and deference (despite the fact that he was only 19 or 20 years of age) and despite the fact that he was in a squad of current World Cup Champions - including the likes of Mario Kempes, Ossie Ardiles, Ricardo Villa and Daniel Passarella.
Why all this hype for a player who hadn’t even played in a World Cup yet?
Hadn’t yet been tested even at the highest club levels.
Because, it was Maradona.
1982 was a remarkable confluence of the geo-political and the sporting.
Britain had fought and defeated Argentina in the war over the Falkland Islands and there was a lot of media speculation and intrigue about whether the countries (in this particular case, England and Argentina) would face each other on the pitch as well.
That never happened but what confronted Maradona was no less than his own theatre of war.
And, Claudio Gentile (the defender who man-marked Maradona in the early stage Italy v Argentina game) has forever earned himself a place in the annals of footballing history for the job he did that day.
To some, Gentile’s performance was no more than a “Take-No-Prisoners” approach to defending that was all too common in the 1980s. All part and parcel of the rumble and tumble of the game, when referees seemed more amenable to foul-ers than to the innocent victims of the actual fouls.
To more still, it was no less than a sporting equivalent of a “Drive-By-Shooting” and such was Gentile’s global notoriety, that his cousin (Francesa), who attended my senior school at the time, attained notable and vicarious celebrity at school by association.
I think the fact that she was incredibly attractive also helped… BUT I digress here…!
In the subsequent game against Brazil, Maradona became frustrated, - the script was not going according to the narrative that he would have prescribed - and he got sent off with boos ringing in his ears at the NOU CAMP (Barcelona), the club he had just signed for.
Then, came Mexico in 1986.
It is this tournament that (arguably) seals his reputation at the top of the footballing tree.
Other players may have achieved more at the top for longer.
Other players may have scored more goals.
Other players may have been more statistically cohesive and collegiate with their teammates.
Other players may (subconsciously) be subject to more favourable media because they have had less or no “extraneous and malign proclivities”.
BUT, in terms of being a sole GAME CHANGER at the highest levels of the footballing game (which is the Word Cup) I don’t believe Maradona has an equal.
He took (all by himself) an average-to-good Argentinean side, shook it by the scruff of its neck, said to them effectively Come With Me If You Want To Win and lifted them to the top of the Mountain.
Too many column inches have been utilized on the England v Argentina match and I humbly beseech you (dear reader) to allow me just a few more virtual ones.
And, on those sublime 5 minutes - between the goal deigned by the “Hand of God” and the one carved by the Feet of the Almighty on Loan when the world stood still and then shrieked and holla-d and marveled and then finally laid down, supine at the sight of mortal majesty.
People actually forget his overall exceptional contributions in the Semi-Final against Belgium which probably surpass his exploits against England but with much less of the drama.
And, his talismanic presence in the Final where Maradona’s strategic purpose was to draw all (West) German fire towards himself so as to leave space for his liberated countrymen.
And, it worked like clock-work.
THEN, there was ITALIA 1990, how Maradona - UNFIT and allegedly in the grip of drug addiction - (and, after losing the opening game to Cameroon) drove his So-So team to another World Cup Final beating the much fancied Italian Hosts in a truculent Semi-Final.
(And, I haven’t even discussed his club contributions with Napoli between 1984 and 1991).
So, in summing up, how would I describe The Man and The Professional - for they are inextricably linked?
For an individual who loved to the bright lights and the centre-stage (as much as Maradona did), the comparisons have to be theatrical.
He was a combination of Marlon Brando, Richard Burton and Lord (Laurence) Olivier.
Like BRANDO, he was - in his own field - probably the most naturally gifted artist of the last century.
Like BURTON, he exuded a commanding and magisterial stage presence (despite not being long on inches) coupled with a “Devil-May-Care” and a “Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May” attitude to life.
And, like OLIVIER, he possessed a ruthless ambition to win (at all costs) which could come at the expense of others not quite so committed.
Maradona - we bid you farewell as you dribble towards your final Act and Resting Place (up on high).
So, in the vernacular of the acting fraternity, we say to you: “Do break a leg”.
But, please, please, please, LET IT NOT BE your left one!
For, to be deprived of the effects of the Maradona left leg is to be deprived of one of the most seminal and awe-inspiring GIFTS and JOYS that life could ever bestow.
Diego Armando Maradona - may your soul rest in perfect peace.
We are richer and fuller for having watched you.