See also: List of international goals scored by Diego Maradona
Maradona on the ball against the Soviet Union in the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship Final in Japan
During his time with the Argentina national team, Maradona scored 34 goals in 91 appearances. He made his full international debut at age 16, against Hungary, on 27 February 1977.
Maradona was left off the Argentine squad for the 1978 World Cup on home soil by coach César Luis Menotti who felt he was too young at age 17.
At age 18, Maradona played the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship in Japan and emerged as the star of the tournament, shining in Argentina’s 3–1 final win over the Soviet Union, scoring a total of six goals in six appearances in the tournament.
On 2 June 1979, Maradona scored his first senior international goal in a 3–1 win against Scotland at Hampden Park.
He went on to play for Argentina in two 1979 Copa América ties during August 1979, a 2–1 loss against Brazil and a 3–0 win over Bolivia in which he scored his side’s third goal.
Speaking thirty years later on the impact of Maradona’s performances in 1979, FIFA President Sepp Blatter stated, “Everyone has an opinion on Diego Armando Maradona, and that’s been the case since his playing days. My most vivid recollection is of this incredibly gifted kid at the second FIFA U-20 World Cup in Japan in 1979. He left everyone open-mouthed every time he got on the ball.”
Maradona and his compatriot Lionel Messi are the only players to win the Golden Ball at both the FIFA U-20 World Cup and FIFA World Cup. Maradona did so in 1979 and 1986, which Messi emulated in 2005 and 2014 (and again in 2022).
1982 World Cup
Maradona played his first World Cup tournament in 1982 in his new country of residence, Spain. Argentina played Belgium in the opening game of the 1982 Cup at the Camp Nou in Barcelona. Maradona did not perform to expectations , as Argentina, the defending champions, lost 1–0. Although the team convincingly beat both Hungary and El Salvador in Alicante to progress to the second round, there were internal tensions within the team, with the younger, less experienced players at odds with the older, more experienced players. With a team that also included such players as Mario Kempes, Osvaldo Ardiles, Ramón Díaz, Daniel Bertoni, Alberto Tarantini, Ubaldo Fillol, and Daniel Passarella, the Argentine side was defeated in the second round by Brazil and by eventual winners Italy. The Italian match is renowned for Maradona being aggressively man-marked by Claudio Gentile, as Italy beat Argentina at the Sarrià Stadium in Barcelona, 2–1.
Maradona played in all five matches without being substituted, scoring twice against Hungary. He was fouled repeatedly in all five games and particularly in the last one against Brazil at the Sarrià, a game that was blighted by poor officiating and violent fouls. With Argentina already down 3–0 to Brazil, Maradona’s temper eventually got the better of him and he was sent off with five minutes remaining for a serious retaliatory foul against Batista .
1986 World Cup
Maradona holding the World Cup in 1986
Maradona captained the Argentine national team to victory in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, winning the final in Mexico City against West Germany.
Throughout the tournament, Maradona asserted his dominance and was the most dynamic player of the competition. He played every minute of every Argentina game, scoring five goals and making five assists; three of the assists came in the opening match against South Korea at the Olímpico Universitario Stadium in Mexico City.
His first goal of the tournament came against Italy in the second group game in Puebla.[80] Argentina eliminated Uruguay in the first knockout round in Puebla, setting up a match against England at the Azteca Stadium, also in Mexico City.
After scoring two contrasting goals in the 2–1 quarter-final win against England, his legend was cemented.
The majesty of his second goal and the notoriety of his first led to the French newspaper L’Équipe describing Maradona as “half-angel, half-devil”.
This match was played with the background of the Falklands War between Argentina and the United Kingdom.
Replays showed that the first goal was scored by striking the ball with his hand. Maradona was coyly evasive, describing it as “a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God”.
It became known as the “Hand of God”. Ultimately, on 22 August 2005, Maradona acknowledged on his television show that he had hit the ball with his hand purposely, and no contact with his head was made, and that he immediately knew the goal was illegitimate. This became known as an international fiasco in World Cup history. The goal stood, much to the wrath of the English players.
“Maradona, turns like a little eel and comes away from trouble, little squat man… comes inside Butcher and leaves him for dead, outside Fenwick and leaves him for dead, and puts the ball away… and that is why Maradona is the greatest player in the world.”
—Bryon Butler’s BBC Radio commentary on Maradona’s second goal against England.
Maradona’s second goal, just four minutes after the hotly disputed hand-goal, was later voted by FIFA as the greatest goal in the history of the World Cup. He received the ball in his own half, swivelled around and with 11 touches ran more than half the length of the field, dribbling past five English outfield players (Peter Beardsley, Steve Hodge, Peter Reid, Terry Butcher, and Terry Fenwick) before he left goalkeeper Peter Shilton on his backside with a feint, and slotted the ball into the net.[85] This goal was voted “Goal of the Century” in a 2002 online poll conducted by FIFA.[86] A 2002 Channel 4 poll in the UK saw his performance ranked number 6 in the list of the 100 Greatest Sporting Moments.
Maradona right before scoring the “Goal of the Century” ( four minutes after his “Hand of God” goal ) against England in Mexico 1986. In 2022, his shirt sold for £7.1 million ($9.3 million), the highest for a piece of sports memorabilia.
Maradona followed this with two more goals in a semi-final match against Belgium at the Azteca, including another virtuoso dribbling display for the second goal. In the final match, West Germany attempted to contain him by double-marking him, but in the 84th minute he nevertheless found space past West German player Lothar Matthäus to give the final pass to Jorge Burruchaga for the winning goal. Argentina beat West Germany 3–2 in front of 115,000 fans at the Azteca with Maradona lifting the World Cup as captain.
During the tournament, Maradona attempted or created more than half of Argentina’s shots, attempted a tournament-best 90 dribbles—three times more than any other player—and was fouled a record 53 times, winning his team twice as many free kicks as any player.[78] Maradona scored or assisted 10 of Argentina’s 14 goals (71%), including the assist for the winning goal in the final, ensuring that he would be remembered as one of the greatest names in football history.[78][90] By the end of the World Cup, Maradona went on to win the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament by unanimous vote and was widely regarded to have won the World Cup virtually single-handedly, something that he later stated he did not entirely agree with. Zinedine Zidane, watching the 1986 World Cup as a 14-year-old, stated Maradona “was on another level”.[94] In a tribute to him, Azteca Stadium authorities built a statue of him scoring the “Goal of the Century” and placed it at the entrance of the stadium.
Regarding Maradona’s performance at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, in 2014, Roger Bennett of ESPN FC described it as “the most virtuoso performance a World Cup has ever witnessed,”[96] while Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times called it “one of the greatest individual performances in tournament history,” with Steven Goff of The Washington Post dubbing his performance as “one of the finest in tournament annals.” In 2002, Russell Thomas of The Guardian described Maradona’s second goal against England in the 1986 World Cup quarter-finals as “arguably the greatest individual goal ever.” In a 2009 article for CBC Sports, John Molinaro described the goal as “the greatest ever scored in the tournament – and, maybe, in soccer.” In a 2018 article for Sportsnet, he added: “No other player, not even Pel[é] in 1958 nor Paolo Rossi in 1982, had dominated a single competition the way Maradona did in Mexico.” He also went on to say of Maradona’s performance: “The brilliant Argentine artist single-handedly delivered his country its second World Cup.” Regarding his two memorable goals against England in the quarter-finals, he commented: “Yes, it was Maradona’s hand, and not God’s, that was responsible for the first goal against England. But while the ‘Hand of God’ goal remains one of the most contentious moments in World Cup history, there can be no disputing that his second goal against England ranks as the greatest ever scored in the tournament. It transcended mere sports – his goal was pure art.”
1990 World Cup
Maradona making the defence splitting pass to Claudio Caniggia (top right) for the winning goal against Brazil, 24 June 1990
Maradona captained Argentina again in the 1990 World Cup in Italy to yet another World Cup final. An ankle injury affected his overall performance, and he was much less dominant than four years earlier, and the team were missing three of their best players due to injury. After losing their opening game to Cameroon at the San Siro in Milan, Argentina were almost eliminated in the group stage, only qualifying in third position from their group. In the round of 16 match against Brazil in Turin, Claudio Caniggia scored the only goal after being set up by Maradona.
In the quarter-final, Argentina faced Yugoslavia in Florence; the match ended 0–0 after 120 minutes, with Argentina advancing in a penalty shootout even though Maradona’s kick, a weak shot to the goalkeeper’s right, was saved. The semi-final against the host nation Italy at Maradona’s club stadium in Naples, the Stadio San Paolo, was also resolved on penalties after a 1–1 draw. This time, however, Maradona was successful with his effort, daringly rolling the ball into the net with an almost exact replica of his unsuccessful kick in the previous round. At the final in Rome, Argentina lost 1–0 to West Germany, the only goal being a controversial penalty scored by Andreas Brehme in the 85th minute, after Rudi Völler was adjudged to be fouled.
1994 World Cup
Maradona at the Foxboro Stadium in Massachusetts, going to do a drug test after playing v Nigeria, 25 June 1994
At the 1994 World Cup in the United States, Maradona played in only two games (both at the Foxboro Stadium near Boston), scoring one goal against Greece, before being sent home after failing a drug test for ephedrine doping.
After scoring Argentina’s third goal against Greece, Maradona had one of the most remarkable World Cup goal celebrations as he ran towards one of the sideline cameras shouting with a distorted face and bulging eyes, in sheer elation of his return to international football.
This turned out to be Maradona’s last international goal for Argentina.
In the second game, a 2–1 victory over Nigeria which was to be his last game for Argentina, he set up both of his team’s goals on free kicks, the second an assist to Caniggia, in what were two very strong showings by the Argentine team.
In his autobiography, Maradona argued that the test result was due to his personal trainer giving him the energy drink Rip Fuel.
His claim was that the U.S. version, unlike the Argentine one, contained the chemical and that, having run out of his Argentine dosage, his trainer unwittingly bought the U.S. formula.[107] FIFA expelled him from USA ’94, and Argentina were subsequently eliminated in the round of 16 by Romania in Los Angeles, having been a weaker team without Maradona, even with players like Gabriel Batistuta and Caniggia on the squad.[108] Maradona also separately claimed that he had an agreement with FIFA, on which the organization reneged, to allow him to use the drug for weight loss before the competition in order to be able to play.
His failed drug test at the 1994 World Cup signalled the end of his international career, which lasted 17 years and yielded 34 goals from 91 games, including one winner’s medal and one runners-up medal in the World Cup.
Alongside official internationals, Maradona also played and scored for an Argentina XI against the World XI in 1978 to mark the first anniversary of their first World Cup win , scored for The Americas against the World in a UNICEF fundraiser a short time after the 1986 triumph, a year after that captained the ‘Rest of the World’ against the English Football League XI to celebrate the organisation’s centenary (after reportedly securing a £100,000 appearance fee)m and was on the scoresheet for the Argentina XI once more in his own ‘farewell match’ in 2001.
Player profile
Style of play
See also: Creole football
Maradona exhibiting his ball control in a match against Lazio (left) and during a training session. Michel Platini stated, “Diego was capable of things no one else could match. The things I could do with a football, he could do with an orange.”
Described as a “classic number 10” in the media, Maradona was a traditional playmaker who usually played in a free role, either as an attacking midfielder behind the forwards, or as a second striker in a front–two, although he was also deployed as an offensive–minded central midfielder in a 4–4–2 formation on occasion.
A precocious talent, Maradona was given the nickname “El Pibe de Oro” (“The Golden Boy”), a name that stuck with him throughout his career.
He was renowned for his dribbling ability, vision, close ball control, passing, and creativity, and is considered to have been one of the most skilful players in the sport.
He had a compact physique, and with his strong legs, low center of gravity, and resulting balance, he could withstand physical pressure well while running with the ball, despite his small stature , while his acceleration, quick feet, and agility, combined with his dribbling skills and close control at speed, allowed him to change direction quickly, making him difficult for opponents to defend against.
Viewed as one of the best dribblers in the game, Maradona (pictured on the ball against Belgium in 1986) would often go on runs against the opposition.
On his dribbling ability, former Dutch player Johan Cruyff saw similarities between Maradona and Lionel Messi with the ball seemingly attached to their boot.
His physical strengths were illustrated by his two goals against Belgium in the 1986 World Cup. Although he was known for his penchant for undertaking individual runs with the ball , he was also a strategist and an intelligent team player, with excellent spatial awareness, as well as being highly technical with the ball. He was effective in limited spaces, and would attract defenders only to quickly dash out of the melee (as in the second goal against England in 1986) , or give an assist to a free teammate. Being short, but strong, he could hold the ball long enough with a defender on his back to wait for a teammate making a run or to find a gap for a quick shot. He showed leadership qualities on the field and captained Argentina in their World Cup campaigns of 1986, 1990, and 1994.
While he was primarily a creative playmaker, Maradona was also known for his finishing and goalscoring ability.
Former Milan manager Arrigo Sacchi also praised Maradona for his defensive work-rate off the ball in a 2010 interview with Il Corriere dello Sport.
Maradona at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico
The team leader on and off the field – he would speak up on a range of issues on behalf of the players – Maradona’s ability as a player and his overpowering personality had a major positive effect on his team, with his 1986 World Cup teammate Jorge Valdano stating:
Maradona was a technical leader: a guy who resolved all difficulties that may come up on the pitch. Firstly, he was in charge of making the miracles happen, that’s something that gives team-mates a lot of confidence. Secondly, the scope of his celebrity was such that he absorbed all the pressures on behalf of his team-mates. What I mean is: one slept soundly the night before a game not just because you knew you were playing next to Diego and Diego did things no other player in the world could do, but also because unconsciously we knew that if it was the case that we lost then Maradona would shoulder more of the burden, would be blamed more, than the rest of us. That was the kind of influence he exercised on the team.
Lauding the “charisma” of Maradona, another of his Argentina teammates, prolific striker Gabriel Batistuta, stated, “Diego could command a stadium, have everyone watch him. I played with him and I can tell you how technically decisive he was for the team”.
Napoli’s former president – Corrado Ferlaino – commented on Maradona’s leadership qualities during his time with the club in 2008, describing him as “a coach on the pitch.”
“Even if I played for a million years, I’d never come close to Maradona. Not that I’d want to anyway. He’s the greatest there’s ever been.”
—Lionel Messi, the player most closely identified with the “New Maradona” label.
One of Maradona’s trademark moves was dribbling full-speed on the right wing, and on reaching the opponent’s goal line, delivering accurate passes to his teammates. Another trademark was the rabona, a reverse-cross pass shot behind the leg that holds all the weight.
This manoeuvre led to several assists, such as the cross for Ramón Díaz’s header against Switzerland in 1980.
Moreover, he was also a well–known proponent of the roulette, a feint which involved him dragging the ball back first with one foot and then the other, while simultaneously performing a 360° turn; due to his penchant for using this move, it has even occasionally been described as the “Maradona turn” in the media.
He was also a dangerous free kick and penalty kick taker, who was renowned for his ability to bend the ball from corners and direct set pieces.
Regarded as one of the best dead-ball specialists of all time , his free kick technique, which often saw him raise his knee at a high angle when striking the ball, thus enabling him to lift it high over the wall, allowed him to score free kicks even from close range, within 22 to 17 yards (20 to 16 metres) from the goal, or even just outside the penalty area. His style of taking free kicks influenced several other specialists, including Gianfranco Zola, Andrea Pirlo, and Lionel Messi.
Maradona was famous for his cunning personality.
Some critics view his controversial “Hand of God” goal at the 1986 World Cup as a clever manoeuvre, with one of the opposition players, Glenn Hoddle, admitting that Maradona had disguised it by flicking his head at the same time as palming the ball. The goal itself has been viewed as an embodiment of the Buenos Aires shanty town Maradona was brought up in and its concept of viveza criolla—”cunning of the criollos”.
Although critical of the illegitimate first goal, England striker Gary Lineker conceded, “When Diego scored that second goal against us, I felt like applauding. It was impossible to score such a beautiful goal. He’s the greatest player of all time, by a long way. A genuine phenomenon.
” Maradona used his hand in the 1990 World Cup, again without punishment, and this time on his own goal line, to prevent the Soviet Union from scoring.
A number of publications have referred to Maradona as the Artful Dodger, the urchin pickpocket from Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist.
Maradona was dominantly left-footed, often using his left foot even when the ball was positioned more suitably for a right-footed connection.
His first goal against Belgium in the 1986 World Cup semi-final is a worthy indicator of such; he had run into the inside right channel to receive a pass but let the ball travel across to his left foot, requiring more technical ability. During his run past several England players in the previous round for the “Goal of the Century” he did not use his right foot once, despite spending the whole movement on the right-hand side of the pitch. In the 1990 World Cup second-round tie against Brazil, he used his right foot to set up the winning goal for Claudio Caniggia due to two Brazilian markers forcing him into a position that made use of his left foot less practical.