There are a number of reasons as to why Diego Maradona has been gleefully accepted into Argentina's heart. One of the main reasons is, of course, the fact he single-handedly dragged them to the 1986 World Cup, scoring one of the Greatest Goals of All Time against England along the way. (Of course, in the same game, he also scored a quite excellent goal which he slalomed through virtually the entire English team, starting from the halfway line).
Another reason as to why Maradona is such a popular figure in Argentina is because he is seen as one of their own. He is, in Argentine parlance, the greatest ever example of El Pibe: a native kid that grew up playing football on the streets before having the world bow before his fleet of foot. The genius of Maradona was in his simplicity: he was essentially the same person as his supporters.
Puma have combined Maradona's sleek and simplistic elegance in releasing these utterly beautiful special edition Puma Kings, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of that goal against England. (Okay, not the handball). Have a look at them, they are utterly divine:
Beautiful. They will be on sale for a limited time only, and will set you back a cool £180. Which, following the Brexit referendum, is somewhere in the region of €10,000.
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