Lionel Messi and Argentina honor Diego Maradona in first game since legend’s death
Maradona, an Argentine icon and widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, died in November last year on one heart failure.
On matchday five of South American World Cup qualifying, Argentina and Chile played to a 1-1 draw in Santiago del Estero, Argentina, with Alexis Sanchez’s goal canceling out Lionel Messi’s penalty.
“The game is special because it was the first without Diego,” Messi told reporters after the game.
“It would have been nice if there had been people in the stadium to honor him, but what is happening in the country and around the world is very complex. We wanted to represent the victory and the national team the way Maradona did.”
READ: Diego Armando Maradona – The tortured genius who became one of football’s greatest players
Before kick-off, the national team and the association president were present at the unveiling of the new Maradona statue in front of the Estadio Unico Madre de Ciudades, where Chile and Argentina played on Thursday.
As the teams lined up on the pitch before the game, players wore images of Maradona on their jerseys with the year of his birth – 1960 – and the infinity symbol instead of the year of his death.
READ: Seven medics charged with murder following investigation into Diego Maradona’s death
The draw meant Argentina missed the chance to overtake Brazil at the top of the table, while Chile remained in seventh place.
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Those: edition.cnn.com
2023-12-28 01:02:13
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