Argentina’s Diego Maradona, one of the greatest footballers of all time in the world, buried Thursday amid a global wave of pain from the streets of Buenos Aires to Naples, Italy.
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Maradona’s death at the age of 60 on Wednesday, after an attack on the center, sparked the mourning and birthday party of a true sports star, who, a genius in the football area, lived a life marred by the struggles with addiction.
On a day of wonderful excitement, the World Cup winner took Thursday night by hearse to Bella Vista Cemetery on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, where his parents are also buried, for a little rite disadvantaged by his circle of close family and friends.
Thousands of Argentinians walked the roads as the procession passed on an hour-long adventure from the presidential palace in central Buenos Aires, where Maradona remained in good condition the day.
Previously, there had been clashes between police and enthusiasts and a feverish atmosphere closer to a football fuss than a call for attention, with enthusiasts climbing the palace gates to get as close as possible to their hero.
In Italy, the crowd tied lots of blue and white handkerchiefs at the gates of their old club in Naples, while in France, the cover of the sports newspaper L’Equipe shouted, “God is dead. “
In Argentina, three days of national duel were called by the player who led the country to victory at the 1986 World Cup and is respected with cult status. Tens of thousands of people took to the streets, not all in masks, despite fears about the COVID-19 pandemic, some left flowers and messages in their home-forming years.
“Maradona to me is the biggest thing that ever happened to me, I love him as much as my father and it’s like my old man is dead,” said Cristian Montelli, 22, a fan of the former Boca Juniors club. with tears in his eyes after crossing the coffin.
“If I die young, I hope I can play ball and see Boca with him,” added Montelli, who had a tattoo of Maradona’s face on his leg.
During the day, Maradona’s body lay in a closed coffin in the casa Rosada presidential palace in the central square of Mayo, covered with the blue and white national flag and an Argentine football shirt with the number 10, a component of his nickname “D10S”. – a play about “god”, the Spanish word for God.
By dawn on Thursday, thousands of enthusiasts had formed a winding line estimated at more than a mile (1. 6 km) long through the streets of Buenos Aires near the square, after a night of mourning and memories.
Fans who entered the palace, many missed it, threw football shirts, flowers and items into the coffin.
“He who touched heaven with his hands but never left the ground,” said President Alberto Fernandez, who visited the coffin on Thursday.
When the government began closing access to the central square on Thursday afternoon, showers broke out, with rubber bullets from police and water cannons to disperse rebel crowds.
Tensions subsided after Maradona’s body moved to the cemetery, surrounded by a massive procession of police and others on motorcycles and cars.
In Naples, meanwhile, enthusiasts carried flowers, children, candles and even a bottle of wine in a improvised sanctuary in development.
“DIEGO BELONGS TO THE PEOPLE”
Prominent athletes and world leaders, Pope Francis born in Argentina, paid his own tributes.
“Diego is from the town, Diego is from Argentina, Diego is from the country”, Dario Lozano, queuing to see the coffin.
Loved in his home country after taking Argentina to world cup glory in 1986 and adored in Italy for taking Napoli to two Serie A titles, Maradona, an exclusive skill player who emerged from the complicated streets of Buenos Aires to triumph at the top of his sport. . (5 images)
The 1986 World Cup included a quarter-final match against England, where Maradona scored two of the tournament’s best-known purposes: an illicit purpose of “Hand of God” and another that followed a haggle.
Maradona has also struggled with fitness disorders over the years due to his addictions. Earlier this month, he was hospitalized for symptoms such as anemia and dehydration and underwent emergency surgery for a subdural hematoma, a blood clot in the brain.
On Thursday, Maradona’s lawyer, Matas Morla, said he would call for a thorough investigation into the death cases and criticize what he described as a slow reaction by the emergency services.
In Italy, Massimo Vignati, owner of a Maradona museum in Naples, said the player had almost a family.
“My mom was Maradona’s Neapolitan mom, she was our 12th brother,” she told Reuters, surrounded by my memories of the player. “We’ll have to not forget it with his smile as usual. He did his last haggle and we left all of a sudden.
reuters