Diego Maradona was a maestro of football: PM Narendra Modi pays tribute to Argentina legend

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has paid homage to Argentina football leagend Diego Maradona, who passed away at the age of 60 after suffering a massive heart attack on Wednesday.

Maradona's untimely demise came just two weeks after he was released from hospital following a brain surgery.

On Thursday,Prime Minister Modi took to his official Twitter handle and extended grief on the sudden death of Maradona.

Describing Maradona as a 'maestro' of the game, the Prime Minister wrote that the Argentina legend had provided some of the best sportingmoments on the football field.

"Diego Maradona was a maestro of football, who enjoyed global popularity. Throughout his career, he gave us some of the best sporting moments on the football field. His untimely demise has saddened us all. May his soul rest in peace," PM Modi tweeted.

Diego Maradona was a maestro of football, who enjoyed global popularity. Throughout his career, he gave us some of the best sporting moments on the football field. His untimely demise has saddened us all. May his soul rest in peace. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 26, 2020

Argentinian president Alberto Fernandez has declared three day of mourning in the country for Maradona's death.During this time, the body of the football great will lie in state at the Casa Rosada-- the seat of the Argentina government.

Meanwhile, thousands on mourners came out onto the streets of Naples and Buenos Aires in Italy in order to pay tribute to Maradona as football stadiums across Europe remained silent ahead of the Champions League matches on Wednesday night.

Maradona is survived by five children including Italian footballer Diego Sinagra and his only wife Claudia Villafane, to whom he was married from 1984 to 2004. 

Fondly remebered for winning the 1986 World Cup for Argentina with a stellar performance that captivated the hearts of millions of fans across the globe,Maradona notched up a total of 34 goals in 91 appearances he made for the national team during his illustrious football career.

Maradona, who was known for his astonishing dribbling skills, where he could easily outfox the defenders and provide assists or himself reach a goal-scoring position, brought up arguably two of the most famous goals in the history of the game during the quarter-final clash of the 1986 World Cup against England.

Popularly known as the 'Hand of God', Maradona's first goal came when he slotted the ball into the net with his bare hand. Just four minutes later, Maradona  single-handedly dribbled through the whole English defence and then scored past goalkeeper Peter Shilton for his second goal. Till date, that goal is considered to be the greatest goal ever scored on the football pitch.

Besides representing Argentina, Maradona also starred for numerous major clubs like Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli and Sevilla. The Argentinian great spent the prominent years of his playing career in Naples, for whom he  scored 81 goals in 181 league appearances.