They don’t know it yet. There are players capable of expressing a people. Diego did not need the mystery: from his condition as a genius to his atrocious end, we know everything about him. For his strengths he was admired, for his weaknesses he was loved. More than thirty years after his exploits and just under three since his death, Naples continues to idolize him with religious fervor: people cross themselves when he names him. Idolized in the murals that adorn the city, marketed in businesses that exploit his figure, invoked by the crowds in the stadium. Emotions have a long memory. Those who saw him play still cannot believe it and those who were not born repeat the story they heard so many times. How can we miss that graffiti that someone wrote in the city cemetery when Diego made them champions: “You don’t know what you’ve missed.”
The wanderer. At the Diego Armando Maradona, Bellingham maradoneó for 45 wonderful minutes. Big game, big player. It was beautiful to see that talent walk around with his twenty-year-old self-confidence and the dominant sufficiency implicit even in his gestures. We are facing one of those players of a higher level who would not need a coach, because his intelligence knows how to respond to all problems spontaneously. Since he is powerful, he can allow himself to play in a very wide field of action; Since he is technically good, it is difficult to see him lose any ball; As he is sacrificed, he is also important to occupy a space when he has to defend; Since he knows the secrets of the game, it is in the vicinity of the area that surprising things occur to him. Knowing what the game requires in each area of the field and at each moment of the game is what distinguishes the cracs. One arrived in Madrid that combines efficiency and beauty.
I know what I’m saying. While Bellingham maradoneabaCommissioner Villarejo Villarejeaba. In a media outlet, as if he were a reference for something decent, and as loose of body as ever, he accused Florentino Pérez of having “fixed matches before Barcelona did.” Florentino did not take even five minutes to bring the statements to court, which is somewhat disproportionate: it is as if Jesus Christ were putting thieves on trial. The “discredit that something remains” has already become another sport in which social networks make a daily contribution. I worked at Real Madrid under Florentino’s presidency in different responsibilities for six years. In a club like Madrid, always exaggerated by the force of passion, it is easy to understand that I had to deal with good, average and bad episodes. But in arbitration matters I put both hands on the fire for Florentino Pérez.
The next one on Mars. We have gone from playing a World Cup (2022) in one city, Doha, to playing it (2026) in a continental dimension: the US, Mexico and Canada. In terms of coverage, the 2030 game will be played on three continents: South America (Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay will host a match), Europe (Spain and Portugal will receive the bulk of the competition) and Morocco. South America will represent the historical part, with the Centenario stadium opening its doors one hundred years later. A romantic wink because the feeling can’t go any further. Europe will give the championship organizational shine and commercial possibilities, which is the crux of the matter. And Africa served to make Saudi Arabia lose votes and will serve to give the championship popular luster. The gesture, the money and the universality. An intelligent political decision that broadens FIFA’s gaze in its legitimate desire for football to embrace the world. In short, the same as always, but with Vaseline.
You can follow EL PAÍS Deportes in Facebook y Xclick here to receive our weekly newsletter.
Subscribe to continue reading
Read without limits
Comments are closed.