A new English language edition Maradona: The Hand of God -the definitive biography, and a recognised classic of football writing, is published today February 18th by Bloomsbury February 18th with new chapter entitled A Death Foretold,detailing the last ten years of the football legend’s turbulent life, from the 2010 World Cup to the global outpouring of grief and remembrance after he suffered a fatal heart attack on the 25th November 2020.
“…… When all is said and done, I still look back at the 1986 Wold Cup in Mexico as Maradona’s most sublime moment when he carved out a special niche in football history and the collective memory….As a final reflection by this biographer, it seems much of the mythology and self-delusion surrounding Diego Maradona is inseparable from the Argentine psyche , for ever seeking-and failing to find-a redeemer to lift it from its political and economic failure…
Maradona’s ambivalent life resonated in the time of Covid, a time of unpredictability, of suffering, of dislocation and when people searched for healing and hope….”
Jimmy Burns February 2021
About Maradona
‘Love or hate the man, his is one of football’s greatest stories and so this is the best football book in ages’ Goal
Anyone doubting that Diego Maradona was more than just a football player had only to witness the outpourings after his death on November 25th 2020. During his tempestuous life and career, he played for top clubs in South America and Europe, notably Napoli where he became an adored hero and adopted son, and grew to be a legend in his homeland of Argentina after leading them to victory in the 1986 World Cup.
Having gained access to his inner circle, Jimmy Burns traces Maradona’s life from the slums of Buenos Aires, where he was born, through his great years of triumph, to the United States from where, in 1994, he was ignobly expelled after undergoing a positive drugs test. He also tells of his failed attempt to bring further glory to Argentina as coach in the 2010 World Cup, and ultimately, his tragic decline and recent death.
Widely regarded as the best and most revealing account of the highs, lows, genius and flaws of arguably the greatest footballer of all time, this biography inspired Asif Kapadia’s award-winning 2019 film Diego Maradona.
