Argentina legend Maradona somehow gets into fight at Pope's charity match for peace
Pope Francis can't be overly thrilled with Maradona's actions
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1 min read
At this point, I've lost count of the dumb things Diego Maradona has done or said during his career or in retirement.
Well, arguably the best player ever is in the news again for all the wrong reasons. Maradona was playing in the Pope's Match of Peace for charity on Wednesday in Rome when he lost his cool a bit and got into it with fellow Argentine Juan Sebastian Veron, who he actually coached at the 2010 World Cup and has had some run-ins with in the past.
First, let's set it up. As Clarin points out, it all began before the 2010 World Cup where Maradona surprisingly had been calling up the 35-year-old midfielder. Maradona, as the coach of Argentina, had some differences with Veron's dad, then the president of Argentine club Estudiantes that reportedly damaged their relationship, nearly ending it. Maradona then reportedly told Veron he wanted him to be Argentina's Xavi, referencing Barcelona's former midfield master, only to then play him little at the 2010 World Cup. And then this year, Maradona said Veron had betrayed him, without going into much detail, adding that he didn't want anything to do with Veron or his father. From there the two went back and forth with Veron saying what Maradona says doesn't matter and that it isn't nice for him to talk about his father.
So, to say the least, things had been tense.
Now take a look at what happened on Wednesday:
So Maradona looks to have taken a dive and then goes for a high five. It appeared as if Veron didn't see him or didn't like it, and Maradona got upset. Now, it's hard to tell exactly what triggered Maradona to point his finger in Veron's face, perhaps frustrations of the past, but they clash even more entering the tunnel and he says "I'm not messing around. I say it to your face, jerk."
Maradona has been critical of Veron in the press in the past and that may certainly have had something to do with Wednesday's exchange.
After the match, Maradona played down the encounter and said what happened is between them, per ESPNFC.
"What happened with Veron stays between us. I'm not supposed to talk about a player who I always admired a lot," Maradona said.
Not much peace in this match. But is there ever when Diego is around?
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