News24
26 Nov 2020, 20:13 GMT+10
A cry goes up outside the San Paolo Stadium in Naples, where since daybreak Thursday tearful mourners have been laying candles and messages for football great Diego Maradona.
"Diego, Diego, Diego!" chants the crowd which gathered where scarves and shirts in Napoli's blue and white have been hung on the fence, transforming it into a makeshift shrine to the city's adopted "king".
"Hear our voices, hear our hearts," shouts Rosario, 77, famed among fans as the stadium's resident "poet", as applause goes up and grown men in face masks in the team's colours openly weep.
Buildings around the southern Italian city are adorned with depictions of the man who dragged Napoli to the top of the Italian game and became an icon for Neapolitans, whose chaotic city was feared and loathed by the rest of Italy.
Maradona played for the then-unfashionable Napoli between 1984 and 1991, after joining following an increasingly unhappy spell at Spanish glamour club Barcelona.
He also lifted the 1989 UEFA Cup, Napoli's only European trophy. He was still Napoli's record goalscorer until three years ago.
"He was our Sunday warrior," 46-year old Fernando Carfora, whose apartment building sports a mural of Maradona, told AFP.
"Maradona didn't play with his feet, he played with his head. Nobody scored Maradona's goals," he said.
"We couldn't wait for him to play, (Sunday) was a day of celebration. When he wasn't playing we were all sad."
Courted by criminals, the King of Spain and even the Pope, Maradona became a quasi-religious figure in Naples.
He brought joy to a desperately poor city blighted by bloody conflicts between the competing clans of the powerful Camorra organised crime network, one of whom Maradona would get to know well.
Maradona's penchant for late-night parties, cocaine and women were almost as famous as his magical displays on the pitch.
But on Thursday many of the pictures and letters being left for him outside the stadium were from adoring children.
Fathers and sons performed the sign of the cross in front of blown-up photos capturing the footballing wizard as he ran wildly down the pitch after scoring, his arms raised in triumph.
Others stopped to pray in front of the red candles.
"My only wish now is to know that he is happy among the angels, maybe they wanted a captain! And he will take them to victory as only he knows how," Giampiero said.
So deep was Maradona's attachment to Naples that he called Napoli's first ever league title, won a year after he led Argentina to the 1986 World Cup, the "greatest triumph" of his career.
His achievements at Napoli, who had been also-rans until he arrived in 1984, cemented his position as the greatest player of his generation and, to many observers, make him the best ever.
"I remember the Naples-Juventus game of '86," said local theatre actor Ciro Cocozza, 51.
"There was an explosion in the stadium when Maradona scored. There were 80,000 of us fans, and even the Juve fans were applauding," he added.
"It was an amazing feeling".
Get a daily dose of Entertainment Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Entertainment Sun.
More InformationWASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump claimed he was unaware that the term shylock is regarded as antisemitic when he used it in...
PARIS, France: A strike by French air traffic controllers demanding improved working conditions caused significant disruptions during...
OMAHA, Nebraska: With Congress considering cuts totaling around US$1 trillion to Medicaid over the next decade, concerns are rising...
ROME, Italy: Quick thinking by emergency responders helped prevent greater devastation after a gas station explosion in southeastern...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump is drawing praise from his core supporters after halting key arms shipments to Ukraine, a...
MOSCOW, Russia: This week, Russia became the first country to officially recognize the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan since...
Washington DC [US], July 8 (ANI): The third season of Japanese thriller series 'Alice in Borderland' has finally got a release date....
London [UK], July 8 (ANI): Star cricketer Virat Kohli, along with his wife and actress Anushka Sharma, were spotted at the centre court...
Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) [India], July 8 (ANI): All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) General Secretary and former Tamil...
New Delhi [India], July 8 (ANI): Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari held a detailed review meeting in New...
New Delhi [India], July 8 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Monday issued a notice to police on a plea moved by real estate baron Gopal...
New Delhi [India], July 8 (ANI): Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) president Nitish Kumar was rushed to Safdarjung...