Every now and then, an athlete comes along that transcends their sport. Muhammad Ali for boxing. Michael Jordan for basketball. Don Bradman for cricket. One of these living legends - Argentine football icon Diego Maradona - calls the UAE home.
Speaking at a Press conference here on Sunday, Maradona expressed his gratitude to the UAE for welcoming him. "I fell in love with the people of the UAE and their customs," he said. "When doors were closed to me, here they opened one."
Born to humble beginnings in a shantytown on the outskirts of Buenos Aires in 1960, by the age of 12 Maradona was already well known to local audiences with dazzling displays of ball control during his local team's halftimes. In 1976 - just ten days shy of his 16th birthday - he made his professional debut for Buenos Aires' Argentinos Juniors, and scored his first professional goal just a few weeks later. By 1981, he had scored 115 goals in 167 appearances.
After a brief stint at another Argentine club, Boca Juniors, Maradona was transferred for a world record $5 million fee to Barcelona, where he soon led the team to victories in the Copa Del Rey (Spain's national cup competition) and Spanish Super Cup, and became the first - and to date, one of only three players - to be applauded by fans of bitter rivals Real Madrid.
His Barcelona career, however, was plagued by injuries, controversy and squabbles with Barcelona execs. His fate at the club was effectively sealed at the 1984 Copa Del Rey final, when an on-field fight saw Maradona head butt an opposing player, elbow another and knock a third out cold with his knee. The fight - which was witnessed by Spanish King Juan Carlos in person and more than half of Spain on television - escalated, leaving 60 injured in what would be his last game in Barcelona colours. Soon after, he transferred to Italy's Napoli, where he reached the peak of his career by becoming the team's all-time leading goal scorer and leading the club through its most successful era, which included two league championships, two second-place finishes and several cup wins.
Despite a series of scandals - including substance use, an illegitimate child and $70,000 in fines for missed practices - Maradona was, and is, a legend to the people of Naples. Maradona murals were painted on walls, children were named after him and his jersey number was forever retired. According to ESPN, one local newspaper in 1987 went as far as to say that the city's lack of "mayor, houses, schools, buses, employment and sanitation. none of this matters because we have Maradona." Maradona's global fame, however, came wearing the blue and white shirt of Argentina's national squad. While he played in four World Cups between 1982 and 1994, his crowning achievement - and his most infamous moment - came during Argentina's victorious1986 World Cup effort in Mexico.
In a quarterfinal game against England, Maradona - intentionally and without the referee noticing - illegally punched the ball with his hand past English goalkeeper Peter Shilton into the goal. "I was waiting for my teammates to embrace me, and no one came," he later recalled. "I told them (to) come hug me or the referee isn't going to allow it."
At a Press conference after the match, Maradona famously credited the goal to "a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the Hand of God" - giving birth to the goal's legendary moniker, the 'Hand of God goal'. Just four minutes after his spectacular act of cheating, Maradona scored what many consider the goal of the century, with Maradona dribbling past four English defenders in a 10-second, 60-yard dash before feinting past Shilton and slotting the ball into the back of the net. In addition to his on-the-pitch skills, much of Maradona's fame is the result of his character, the good, the bad - and the ugly. Even at the height of his career as a player, Maradona suffered from personal demons.
Between the mid-1980s and 2004, he was addicted and was a heavy drinker. In 1994 he was sent home from the World Cup in disgrace after testing positive for banned substances. Later on, he was handed a suspended one-year prison sentence for firing an air rifle at reporters, and he has been in trouble with the tax authorities. On the other hand, Maradona has cultivated an image as a man of the people, often speaking out against imperialism and in defence of the poor. Among his friends were Fidel Castro (of whom he has a tattoo along with one of Che Guevara) and Hugo Chavez, and he's been involved in charitable organisations designed to help young children and promote unity through sport.
In 1987, Maradona even clashed with then-Pope John Paul II on wealth disparity. "I argued with him because I was in the Vatican and I saw all these golden ceilings and afterwards I heard the Pope say the Church was worried about the welfare of poor kids," he later said. "Sell your ceiling then. Do something." After retiring as a player in 1997, Maradona began a career as a manager, which included two Argentine clubs and Argentina's 2010 World Cup side.
In May 2011, he came to the UAE to take charge of Dubai side Al Wasl, and was appointed Dubai sports ambassador. In the 14 months he ran Al Wasl - he was sacked in July 2012 - Maradona became a lover of all things Emirati. Not content with sitting on the sidelines, Maradona is now back in action, this time as manager of Fujairah FC. "I was tired of watching football on TV. I wanted to have the feeling of managing a team," he noted. "Now I consider Fujairah as my home."
When asked why he wanted to continue pursuing football professionally, Maradona responded with typical modesty. "Because I was the best player in world history."

source: Khaleejtimes