Xtra Time Web Desk: Legendary Argentine footballer Diego Maradona, who passed away on Wednesday, shall always remain close to the heart of the football crazy fans of Kolkata. The 1986 World Cup winning Argentina captain visited the City of Joy twice. His first trip to Kolkata was 2008. The second visit was three years back when a little bulky version of Maradona huffed and puffed during a charity football game.
Maradona’s three-day visit to India was scheduled to be quite an eventful one which also included a charity football match against former India captain Sourav Ganguly at Barasat, West Bengal. Accompanied by partner Rocio Oliva, the former Napoli star, sporting white shorts, spent some time on the field with a group of school children. However, the unusually warm weather in Barasat drained him out which meant that the South American star became tired and left soon after exchanging pleasantries with Ganguly.
During his visit to Kolkata in 2017, Maradona had also unveiled a 12-feet statue of him which depicted him holding the 1986 World Cup trophy but it hardly bore any resemblance to the then 25-year-old captain of Argentina.
But before leaving the country his parting words were, “Football wants India and India wants football.”
He also obliged his many die-hard fans with photographs and did not mind sitting on the pitch for that perfect frame. He then headed straight near the packed galleries and wowed his fans with shooting some footballs in the air. Cheered on by a delirious crowd, Maradona then hummed a couple of songs.
In December 2008, when Maradona made his first trip to Kolkata, he had enjoyed god-like status. “This is the second biggest reception of my life after Napoli,” he had famously said on a tv channel as the city of joy celebrated like he was one of their own. The 15,000 strong crowds which gathered to receive him made it hard to differentiate whether it was Naples or the Netaji Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata.
Back then accompanied by his girlfriend Veronica Estefani, the soccer legend was in a better physical shape and seemed in a cheerful mood as he made his way to the Mohun Bagan ground and enthralled the captivated audience by juggling the ball with his left foot, balancing it on his forehead, rolling it over before kicking it towards the frenzied crowd.
From thereon he had also paid a visit to former Chief Minister of West Bengal, Jyoti Basu, where the two shared pleasantries. Maradona was reportedly impressed when Basu showed him a few pictures of him with Fidel Castro
It was not for nothing that India reacted with shock, anger and sadness after his heart stopped beating on Wednesday.