Giant Mural Of Argentine Soccer Legend Deigo Maradona Opens On His Birthday

An Argentine artist, Maximiliano Bagnasco, was hired by an anonymous person to paint a mural of former Argentine football legend Diego Maradona. The giant mural is a gift to Maradona's family for his birthday that was on Sunday. It measures 40 meters in height and 12 meters in width and is the world's tallest mural of Maradona.

In a report, CGTN stated that the mural was opened on Sunday, Maradona's birthday.

Meanwhile, Yahoo! News also reported that the football legend's mural was set near Buenos Aires. The highly anticipated piece was created to honor the late football icon and was inaugurated on what would have been Maradona's 62nd birthday.

Maradona was born on Oct. 30, 1960. He was an Argentine professional footballer and manager. Widely considered one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was also one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the 20th Century award. His vision, passing, ball control, dribbling skills, and small stature, gave him a low center of gravity letting him maneuver better than most other players.

It has been known that Maradona's presence and leadership on the field played a significant effect on his team's overall performance, while he was frequently singled out by his opponents. Thus, he was nicknamed "El Pibe de Oro" which means "The Golden Boy", a name that stuck with him throughout his career. Though, he also had a disturbing off-field life and was banned in both 1991 and 1994 for drug abuse.

In his international career with Argentina, Maradona earned 91 caps and scored 34 goals. He played in four FIFA World Cups, including the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. In this tournament, he captained Argentina and led them to victory over West Germany. He also won the Golden Ball as the tournament's most outstanding player.

Then, in the 1986 World Cup quarter-final, he scored both goals in a 2–1 win over England that documented football history for two different reasons. The first goal was an unpenalized handling foul known as the "Hand of God," and the second goal followed a 60 m dribble past five England players, voted "Goal of the Century" by FIFA.com voters in 2002.

Al Jazeera reported that in the 1986 World Cup, Maradona scored five goals and five assists. This led Argentina to crowning glory and sealed Maradona's place in the pantheon of sporting greatness. Argentina has not won a World Cup since.

Maradona passed away in November 2020 at the age of 60 after suffering a heart attack.

With World Cup 2022 less than a month away, and with Argentina as one of the favorites, the nation's hope is pinned on Lionel Messi. He hopes to lead his team to its first World Cup win since 1986, which belonged to Maradona.