STORY: Considered one of the greatest soccer players in history, Maradona died aged 60 on Nov. 25, 2020, after battling drug and alcohol abuse for years.Despite his passing, Maradona remains very much present in the minds of Argentina fans. Scores still wear his jersey, sing about his "Hand of God" goal against England in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup and furiously debate whether comparisons to Lionel Messi are even appropriate.At the CONMEBOL Tree of Dreams in central Doha, an area celebrating South American soccer, FIFA president Gianni Infantino greeted former team mates of Maradona, who took turns describing his greatness on and off the pitch.Ricardo Giusti, who played with Maradona at the 1986 and 1990 World Cups, said it was impossible to compare him to Messi, who with his goal in the 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabia became the first Argentine to score at four different World Cups.Messi, possibly in his final World Cup at 35, converted on a penalty kick in the Saudi Arabia defeat. The Argentina captain described the loss as a huge blow and pledged that they would regroup for their Group C match against Mexico on Saturday.
STORY: Considered one of the greatest soccer players in history, Maradona died aged 60 on Nov. 25, 2020, after battling drug and alcohol abuse for years.Despite his passing, Maradona remains very much present in the minds of Argentina fans. Scores still wear his jersey, sing about his “Hand of God” goal against England in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup and furiously debate whether comparisons to Lionel Messi are even appropriate.At the CONMEBOL Tree of Dreams in central Doha, an area celebrating South American soccer, FIFA president Gianni Infantino greeted former team mates of Maradona, who took turns describing his greatness on and off the pitch.Ricardo Giusti, who played with Maradona at the 1986 and 1990 World Cups, said it was impossible to compare him to Messi, who with his goal in the 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabia became the first Argentine to score at four different World Cups.Messi, possibly in his final World Cup at 35, converted on a penalty kick in the Saudi Arabia defeat. The Argentina captain described the loss as a huge blow and pledged that they would regroup for their Group C match against Mexico on Saturday.
