Maradona commemorated on his first death anniversary

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Football circles on Thursday commemorated Argentine legend Diego Armando Maradona on his first death anniversary.

His former clubs Boca Juniors and Napoli paid tribute to Maradona on social media as the 1986 FIFA World Cup winner died of heart failure on Nov. 25, 2020.

He was 60.

"You never left. You are in the heart of every fan," Boca Juniors said on Twitter, putting a popular #DiegoEterno hashtag and a video of his Boca Juniors times.

"Eterno" means eternal.

In addition, Napoli, an Italian Serie A club, also tweeted to commemorate their ex-star.

Napoli said that they love Diego and called him "The God of Football." The club also shared several wallpapers for the Napoli fans.

The South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) thanked Maradona for his contributions to the game.

"Thanks Diego for everything you left us! One year after your departure, we remember all your extraordinary talent, magic, and leadership.

Football thanks you for your enormous legacy and all that you have accomplished," CONMEBOL said on social media.

Maradona was a versatile player on the pitch who could play in different positions in the offense.

Like his compatriot Lionel Messi, Maradona was known for his pace, highly skilled technique, and dribbling skills.

One of the iconic football figures of all time, Maradona, 25 at the time, was the Argentina captain when he helped his nation win the 1986 World Cup.

Maradona played for Boca Juniors, Barcelona and Napoli to lift nine club trophies.

The Argentine national was a beloved Napoli player as he won the 1987 and 1990 Italian Serie A titles as well as the 1989 UEFA Cup.

Following his death, Napoli's San Paolo Stadium was renamed the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium.

In a couple of Serie A matches in November, Napoli players wore a special fingerprint kit dedicated to Maradona.

A massive fingerprint design over a Maradona silhouette is dominant on the club's special edition jersey. An artist created this pattern to refer to the Argentine great's eternal imprint that he made on Naples' culture and the game as a player.

Maradona was one of the remarkable players, but things did not go well as a manager.

He was a head coach for the Argentine national team for the 2010 World Cup held in South Africa.

Argentina hired Maradona in 2008 to manage the national team for the 2010 World Cup finals, but he failed in this tournament.

Maradona's men were eliminated in the quarterfinals over a shocking 4-0 loss to Germany in Cape Town, South Africa.