EUROPEAN football will stop to remember the genius of Diego Maradona for the next two nights after the death of the Argentine superstar at just 60.
Uefa chiefs ordered a minute’s silence from all players, officials and fans at tonight’s Champions League ties after the news from Buenos Aires broke.
A minute’s silence for Diego Maradona will be observed in all Champions League and Europa League gamesCredit: Reuters
Argentina legend Maradona passed away at the age of 60Credit: AP:Associated Press
And the gesture will be repeated ahead of tomorrow’s Europa League ties.
Uefa recognises the South American’s huge impact on European football during his spells with Barcelona and Napoli.
Maradona won the old Uefa Cup with Napoli in 1989, scoring a penalty in the first leg of the final against Stuttgart, helping the Italian side to a 5-4 aggregate victory.
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He spent seven years in Serie A after two seasons in Catalonia, taking the Stadio San Paolo side to their only two domestic crowns in 1987 and 1990 after his then-world record £6.9m move.
Uefa chiefs believe it is only right that European football shows its respect for one of the greatest players in the history of the game.
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin said: “I am deeply saddened to hear of the death of Diego Maradona, one of world football’s greatest and most iconic figures.
“I was in touch recently to wish him well, and this news comes as a considerable shock to me.
“Diego Maradona achieved greatness as a wonderful player with a genius and charisma of his own.
Man City paid tribute before their game with OlympiacosCredit: Getty Images – Getty
“He was a hero in his native Argentina, with whom he enjoyed World Cup glory, and became an eternal idol for the supporters of Napoli, who will never forget the successes he brought to the club during his memorable spell in Italy.
“He will go down in history as someone who set football alight and thrilled fans young and old with his brilliance and skill. I have instructed UEFA to hold a minute’s silence in memory of Diego at this week’s matches.”
Meanwhile, Aurelio De Laurentiis, president of Maradona’s former club Napoli, has already suggested he will change the name of the San Paolo stadium to honour the two-time Serie A winner.
Maradona was widely respected and loved by the football communityCredit: AFP
Napoli could name their stadium after the two-time Serie A winnerCredit: AP:Associated Press
He said: “We can consider the idea of calling our stadium San Paolo-Diego Armando Maradona.”
As a further mark of respect, Napoli announced they would turn on the floodlights at the stadium which witnessed so many of Maradona’s feats to honour his memory and passing.
On its official Twitter feed, Naploi said Maradona would be “always in our hearts”.
The club added: “The world awaits our words but there are no words to describe the pain we’re going through. Now is the time to grieve.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
