Before modern-day football icons and stunned the world, many football fans largely believed that Argentine phenomenon , along with legend , was the greatest player of all time. Best known for his historic brace against in the 1986 , where he scored two famous goals in the space of five minutes that ultimately sent the Three Lions packing and his nation through to the semifinals, Maradona would not just go down as the sublime footballer that he was but also as one of the most controversial characters too. This is, of course, because of his 'hand of God' moment, where he opened the scoring for Argentina in the quarterfinal by delicately guiding the ball over head with the use of his hand, which was not spotted by the officials and counted as a legitimate goal.
However, only a few minutes later, he would then produce a moment of sheer brilliance, picking the ball up in his own half, dancing around the England team like they were not even there, and taking it past the keeper and slotting it in. With all this in mind, here are the reasons why the late Maradona was so good at playing football. Argentina fans asked to choose between Lionel Messi & Diego Maradona - there's a clear winner While perhaps Maradona does not have the jaw-dropping goalscoring numbers of Messi and Ronaldo, in his prime, he was certainly one of the most lethal forwards in the business, finishing from ridiculous angles and positions that most would not even attempt to score from.
Audacious in the attempts he would make on goal, multiple times throughout his illustrious career, he was seen chipping goalkeepers from absurd angles and would often favour accuracy over power, intelligently guiding the ball into the net with his magnificent technique, exemplified by the sumptuous free kick that he dispatched against in the 84/85 season, where he elegantly lifted an elegant strike over the wall, sending the ball into the top right corner in what felt like slow motion. The Ballon d'Or wasn't awarded to non-European players until 1995 Despite being recognised mostly in his club career for his time at , his best scoring record in Europe was actually in the earlier stages of his career at , where he impressively scored 38 goals in 58 appearances for 'Blaugrana,' while also racking up 23 assists in that time as well, taking him above a goal contribution per game. Diego Maradona's Club Statistics Matches 343 Goals 159 Assists 103 Trophies won 9 Manchester United legend Eric Cantona picked Roy Keane, George Best and Diego Maradona in his 'perfect XI' back in 2006 However, as awe-inspiring as Maradona's numbers were, it was not just that which made him an icon of the game; it was the moments of magic that he could produce from absolutely nothing that other than his compatriot Messi has not been seen before or since.
It was the low centre of gravity that he had due to his diminutive size and phenomenally rigid core body strength that made him almost impossible to knock off the ball when he was in full flow, making him a nightmare to try and tackle for defenders. It often resulted in the opposition either trying to mark him out of the game with multiple men or employing the tactic of roughing him up by fouling him, but neither would work, as he would still get on the ball and impact games at the highest level. Playing against some of the best defenders of all time during the golden ages of the Italian first division, the likes of , Franco Baresi, and have all described their experiences of playing against the Argentine, praising him as the best player they ever came up against.
Former Juventus and legend of the game, Michel Platini, described Maradona's talent to before a UEFA executive committee meeting: "Zidane does some extraordinary things; it's true. But you have to put everything in context. What Zidane does with a ball, Maradona could do with an orange.
" Diego Maradona's Argentina Statistics Matches 84 Goals 32 Assists 26 Trophies won 2 When the going got tough, these players always had a secret weapon to rely on To Maradona, football was a blank canvas; the ball was his instrument, and with that, he created art. What made him the player he was wasn't showboating skill moves or flicks, but the touch of beauty, movement on and off the ball with pace and purpose, and most importantly, his creative mind, which allowed him to execute ideas that most would not even think of to begin with. Assisting 106 goals across his club career, the Argentine may not get the credit he deserves in terms of how much of a selfless player he was on the pitch, not only looking to make headlines by scoring goals but also looking to pick out teammates after going on a dazzling run.
Being a character both on and off the pitch, there was a feeling you get watching Maradona that not many can provide. Whether it was in his finishing, when he was in full flight with the ball at his feet, or even just celebrating a goal, you could never really anticipate what was going to happen next, and that's part of what made him so special. The great Brazilian midfielder, Zico, told FourFourTwo in an exclusive interview that he believed that Maradona was the greatest of his generation, saying: "The best of the lot, no question.
In my generation, my era, he was simply the best. I saw Maradona do things that God himself would doubt were possible. He always had someone marking him; he always had someone hanging on to him, and yet he could still always conjure up wonderful pieces of magic.
A genius." Tragically, Maradona passed away in December 2020 at the age of 60. However, his memory will live on forever, and in his own words before he passed, he reinforced his love and joy for the beautiful game, saying: "If I die, I want to be born again, and I want to be a footballer.
And I want to be Diego Armando Maradona again. I'm a player who's given people joy, and that's enough for me; it's more than enough." The 24 most creative players in World Cup history have been ranked based on total chances created at the tournament.
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