Photo: remerascopadas.com.ar
Argentina coach Diego Maradona’s behavior has him in the news again, this time for verbally abusing a journalist whose foot he ran over. Matador Sports looks at this and four more classic Maradona moments:
1986: During a World Cup quarterfinal match against England, Maradona scores off of a handball. The referee doesn’t see the foul, and Argentina wins 2-1. When asked about the play, Maradona says he scored “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God.”
1994: Maradona shoots at a group of journalists outside his home with an air rifle, injuring four people. He later claims that they were invading his privacy.
2000: Maradona walks out on a FIFA ceremony honoring him as the best player of the 20th century after he finds out he has to share the award with Pele. “If [Pele] thinks he’s the best player of the century that’s his problem,” Maradona says.
2009: After qualifying Argentina for the 2010 World Cup, Maradona launches into an obscene tirade at a press conference, telling media that “they can suck it and keep on sucking it.” FIFA suspends him for two months and fines him $24,630.
2010: While driving to a press conference to announce his picks for Argentina’s World Cup squad, Maradona accidentally runs over a photographer’s foot. Instead of apologizing, Maradona calls the photographer an “asshole” and yells at him for putting his leg in front of the car.
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Adam Roy
Chicago native Adam Roy is the former-Editor of Matador Sports and an aspiring renaissance man to boot. For more of Adam's writing, check out his blog at Ill-Advised Adventures.
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