A world united in grief and collective nostalgia when news broke of Diego Maradona\u2019s death.
\nPain was sharpest in the 60-year-old\u2019s spiritual homes of Buenos Aires and Naples as the loss of their most-celebrated adopted son sank in. Yet much of the final decade of “El Pibe de Oro\u2019s” (“The Golden Kid\u2019s”) uproarious, complex and impassioned life was spent in the UAE.
\nMaradona parted ways with\u00a0Al Wasl after one trophyless season for 2011\/12, culminating in an eighth-placed finish when the football deity\u2019s all-too-human failings became glaringly apparent. He didn\u2019t make the 2017\/18 promotion play-offs when a five-year coaching absence was surprisingly ended by lower-league Fujairah, departing in the wake of their final-day draw which denied automatic progress.
\nPoignantly, both clubs meet in the Arabian Gulf League on Thursday.
\nA role as \u2018Sporting Ambassador\u2019 of Dubai Sports Council was bestowed on the venerated World Cup 1986 talisman and miracle-working, two-time Serie A champion with Napoli. This led to Maradona being summoned from his luxurious getaway on The Palm to greet the great and good attracted by the city\u2019s bright lights.
\nBut such bare facts, as always, only scratch the surface of the Argentina icon\u2019s vivid legacy.
\nStories apocryphal, embellished and factual are shared within the Emirates\u2019 varied communities. They define a footballer who will be eternally cherished.
\nThis writer is fortunate to possess several.
\nA frantic afternoon race to Sport360\u2019s offices to sweep up as many copies as possible after grateful acceptance of an award for the \u2013 then \u2013 newspaper\u2019s all-time World Cup legend was followed by a request to take a hundred back to Argentina to show the \u201cninos\u201d (\u201ckids\u201d). In time for that evening\u2019s flight.
\n(Sport360).
\nHis common touch backstage on \u2018The Victorious\u2019 talent show, where a torrent of fellow megastars such as Ryan Giggs were greeted with the same grace as the lowliest studio runner.
\nPlayful jibes about the \u2018Hand of God\u2019 during a touchline interview with his English interviewer at Fujairah Stadium. A lasting handshake and warm \u201chermanos\u201d (\u201cbrothers\u201d) once our lengthy chat was concluded.
\nOther sources regale about a member of staff tasked to translate Sport360\u2019s pages every morning, lavish tips handed out to street cleaners, extraordinary generosity to Wasl staff, impromptu kickabouts at Dubai Police Officers Club, fevered crowds at restaurant openings in Abu Dhabi and weekly touchline support \u2013 just like all the other uncelebrated partners – for his girlfriend\u2019s five-a-side team at Dubai Sports City.
\nAscertaining the veracity of such incidents didn\u2019t feel important. Better to let the myth grow, unless something needed verifying for print.
\nMaradona was one of those singular characters from which fact and fiction are equally entertaining.
\nHe was only meant to stop over in Dubai on his way to a ground opening in the Chechen capital of Grozny. Yet a crowd of 10,000 would be there to greet him days later at Zabeel Stadium, after an opportunistic offer of employment from a Wasl official was accepted.
\nWeekly press conferences, performed in the impenetrable brogue imbued by his Villa Fiorito upbringing, became global media events. This, distinctly, never happens in Asian football.
\nThen there was the union with one of few equally tempestuous footballers. An inexplicable 10th-minute head butt from goalkeeper Majed Nasser, already serving a 17-match domestic ban for slapping Al Ahli tactician Quique Sanchez Flores, sparked unlikely meltdown against Bahrain\u2019s Al Muharraq in the GCC Championships League final.
\nTwitter\u2019s nascent power was felt when video spread of Maradona ‘kicking’ an intruding supporter\u2019s hand for the unravelling of a banner of support from his grandson.
\n\u0648\u062f\u0627\u0639\u0627\u064b \u0623\u064a\u0647\u0627 \u0627\u0644\u0623\u0633\u0637\u0648\u0631\u0629 ???#\u0645\u0627\u0631\u0627\u062f\u0648\u0646\u0627 #Maradona pic.twitter.com\/rsFFO4Hg7m— AlWasl SC (@AlWaslSC) November 25, 2020
\n“I’d like to apologise to one of the fans. I was trying to unfurl and see the whole banner and, by mistake, I perhaps injured him,\u201d was his take on the situation.
\nDubai residents, just like their counterparts in London, are loathed to leave their metropolis\u2019 confines. Yet the media hordes hurtled to Fujairah\u2019s Al Diar Siji Hotel for Maradona\u2019s unveiling five years later once a shock move was wrapped up.
\nAn\u00a0often-bizarre press conference was begun by repeatedly bellowing \u201ccafe\u201d (\u201ccoffee\u201d) down the microphone and then insisting he wanted his grandson and children to witness \u201cthe glory of their grandfather and father\u201d.
\nSerenity, so fleeting in such an epic existence, would detail the majority of this stint away from the typical intense spotlight.
\nA near two-hour daily commute to training was enlivened by humorous Instagram Stories and sing-alongs. On the pitch, enchanted and well-drilled players \u2013 thanks to No2 Luis Islas – would go undefeated.
\nTheir efforts, however, were undermined by 11 draws in a goal-shy team. Then came that last fixture\u2026
\nThis is where the infamous dichotomy between \u2018Diego\u2019 and \u2018Maradona\u2019 emerged. With gusto.
\nA 1-1 draw against Khor Fakkan denied Fujairah their essential top-two berth, sparking a raucous chain of events leading to the coach\u2019s abrupt exit. Contorted claims and counter-claims of sackings, resignations, returns and terminated talks brought a sorry end to a chapter which promised so much.
\nSwitches to Belarus\u2019 Dynamo Brest, Mexico\u2019s Dorados de Sinaloa and Argentina\u2019s Gimnasia de La Plata took him away from the UAE. Before this week\u2019s mournful ends brought a definitive finale.
\nMulti-faceted Maradona touched millions of lives, producing a multitude of conflicting interpretations.
\nbeautiful days. Unforgettable memories that will be remembered in history that the best touch of football was here in Fujairah Goodbye, legend #Maradona #maradona pic.twitter.com\/NOO9f58NAy— FUJFC_EN (@FujfcE) November 26, 2020
\nMy choice? I\u2019ll forever recall the unkempt figure at Fujairah Stadium, knees and ankles crippled by brutal tackles, performing slow-motion nutmegs on his players and barking \u201cArriba, arriba, arriba, arriba\u201d.
\nAt peace, in his own way, on a far-away football pitch. Just him, his players and the ball.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A world united in grief and collective nostalgia when news broke of Diego Maradona\u2019s death.
\nPain was sharpest in the 60-year-old\u2019s spiritual homes of Buenos Aires and Naples as the loss of their most-celebrated adopted son sank in. Yet much of the final decade of \u201cEl Pibe de Oro\u2019s\u201d (\u201cThe Golden Kid\u2019s\u201d) uproarious, complex and impassioned life was spent in the UAE.
\nMaradona parted ways with\u00a0Al Wasl after one trophyless season for 2011\/12, culminating in an eighth-placed finish when the football deity\u2019s all-too-human failings became glaringly apparent. He didn\u2019t make the 2017\/18 promotion play-offs when a five-year coaching absence was surprisingly ended by lower-league Fujairah, departing in the wake of their final-day draw which denied automatic progress.
\nPoignantly, both clubs meet in the Arabian Gulf League on Thursday.
\nA role as \u2018Sporting Ambassador\u2019 of Dubai Sports Council was bestowed on the venerated World Cup 1986 talisman and miracle-working, two-time Serie A champion with Napoli. This led to Maradona being summoned from his luxurious getaway on The Palm to greet the great and good attracted by the city\u2019s bright lights.
\nBut such bare facts, as always, only scratch the surface of the Argentina icon\u2019s vivid legacy.
\nStories apocryphal, embellished and factual are shared within the Emirates\u2019 varied communities. They define a footballer who will be eternally cherished.
\nThis writer is fortunate to possess several.
\nA frantic afternoon race to Sport360\u2019s offices to sweep up as many copies as possible after grateful acceptance of an award for the \u2013 then \u2013 newspaper\u2019s all-time World Cup legend was followed by a request to take a hundred back to Argentina to show the \u201cninos\u201d (\u201ckids\u201d). In time for that evening\u2019s flight.
\n(Sport360).
\nHis common touch backstage on \u2018The Victorious\u2019 talent show, where a torrent of fellow megastars such as Ryan Giggs were greeted with the same grace as the lowliest studio runner.
\nPlayful jibes about the \u2018Hand of God\u2019 during a touchline interview with his English interviewer at Fujairah Stadium. A lasting handshake and warm \u201chermanos\u201d (\u201cbrothers\u201d) once our lengthy chat was concluded.
\nOther sources regale about a member of staff tasked to translate Sport360\u2019s pages every morning, lavish tips handed out to street cleaners, extraordinary generosity to Wasl staff, impromptu kickabouts at Dubai Police Officers Club, fevered crowds at restaurant openings in Abu Dhabi and weekly touchline support \u2013 just like all the other uncelebrated partners \u2013 for his girlfriend\u2019s five-a-side team at Dubai Sports City.
\nAscertaining the veracity of such incidents didn\u2019t feel important. Better to let the myth grow, unless something needed verifying for print.
\nMaradona was one of those singular characters from which fact and fiction are equally entertaining.
\nHe was only meant to stop over in Dubai on his way to a ground opening in the Chechen capital of Grozny. Yet a crowd of 10,000 would be there to greet him days later at Zabeel Stadium, after an opportunistic offer of employment from a Wasl official was accepted.
\nWeekly press conferences, performed in the impenetrable brogue imbued by his Villa Fiorito upbringing, became global media events. This, distinctly, never happens in Asian football.
\nThen there was the union with one of few equally tempestuous footballers. An inexplicable 10th-minute head butt from goalkeeper Majed Nasser, already serving a 17-match domestic ban for slapping Al Ahli tactician Quique Sanchez Flores, sparked unlikely meltdown against Bahrain\u2019s Al Muharraq in the GCC Championships League final.
\nTwitter\u2019s nascent power was felt when video spread of Maradona \u2018kicking\u2019 an intruding supporter\u2019s hand for the unravelling of a banner of support from his grandson.
\n\u0648\u062f\u0627\u0639\u0627\u064b \u0623\u064a\u0647\u0627 \u0627\u0644\u0623\u0633\u0637\u0648\u0631\u0629 ???#\u0645\u0627\u0631\u0627\u062f\u0648\u0646\u0627 #Maradona pic.twitter.com\/rsFFO4Hg7m\u2014 AlWasl SC (@AlWaslSC) November 25, 2020
\n\u201cI\u2019d like to apologise to one of the fans. I was trying to unfurl and see the whole banner and, by mistake, I perhaps injured him,\u201d was his take on the situation.
\nDubai residents, just like their counterparts in London, are loathed to leave their metropolis\u2019 confines. Yet the media hordes hurtled to Fujairah\u2019s Al Diar Siji Hotel for Maradona\u2019s unveiling five years later once a shock move was wrapped up.
\nAn\u00a0often-bizarre press conference was begun by repeatedly bellowing \u201ccafe\u201d (\u201ccoffee\u201d) down the microphone and then insisting he wanted his grandson and children to witness \u201cthe glory of their grandfather and father\u201d.
\nSerenity, so fleeting in such an epic existence, would detail the majority of this stint away from the typical intense spotlight.
\nA near two-hour daily commute to training was enlivened by humorous Instagram Stories and sing-alongs. On the pitch, enchanted and well-drilled players \u2013 thanks to No2 Luis Islas \u2013 would go undefeated.
\nTheir efforts, however, were undermined by 11 draws in a goal-shy team. Then came that last fixture\u2026
\nThis is where the infamous dichotomy between \u2018Diego\u2019 and \u2018Maradona\u2019 emerged. With gusto.
\nA 1-1 draw against Khor Fakkan denied Fujairah their essential top-two berth, sparking a raucous chain of events leading to the coach\u2019s abrupt exit. Contorted claims and counter-claims of sackings, resignations, returns and terminated talks brought a sorry end to a chapter which promised so much.
\nSwitches to Belarus\u2019 Dynamo Brest, Mexico\u2019s Dorados de Sinaloa and Argentina\u2019s Gimnasia de La Plata took him away from the UAE. Before this week\u2019s mournful ends brought a definitive finale.
\nMulti-faceted Maradona touched millions of lives, producing a multitude of conflicting interpretations.
\nbeautiful days. Unforgettable memories that will be remembered in history that the best touch of football was here in Fujairah Goodbye, legend #Maradona #maradona pic.twitter.com\/NOO9f58NAy\u2014 FUJFC_EN (@FujfcE) November 26, 2020
\nMy choice? I\u2019ll forever recall the unkempt figure at Fujairah Stadium, knees and ankles crippled by brutal tackles, performing slow-motion nutmegs on his players and barking \u201cArriba, arriba, arriba, arriba\u201d.
\nAt peace, in his own way, on a far-away football pitch. Just him, his players and the ball.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1855"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1855"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1855\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1856,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1855\/revisions\/1856"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1855"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1855"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1855"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}