Football legend Diego Maradona, one of the greatest players of all time, has died at the age of 60.
The former Argentine midfielder and manager suffered a heart attack at his Buenos Aires home.
He had a successful operation on a brain blood clot in early November and should be treated for alcohol addiction.
Maradona was the captain when Argentina won the 1986 World Cup and scored the famous “Hand of God” goal against England in the quarter-finals.
In a statement on social media, the Argentine Football Association expressed “its deepest sorrow for the death of our legend,” adding: “You will always be in our hearts.”
Alberto Fernandez, the President of Argentina, declared for three days of national mourning: “You have brought us to the top of the world. You made us extremely happy. You were the greatest of all.”
“Thank you for existing Diego. We will miss you all our lives.”
Maradona played for Barcelona and Napoli during his club career and won two Serie A titles with the Italian team.
He scored 34 goals in 91 games for Argentina and represented them at four World Cups.
Maradona led his country to the 1990 final in Italy, where they were beaten by West Germany before being re-used as captain in the US in 1994. However, after a failed drug test for ephedrine, she was sent home.
In the second half of his career, Maradona struggled with cocaine addiction and was banned for 15 months after testing positive for the drug in 1991.
In 1997, on his 37th birthday, he retired from professional football during his second stint with the Argentine giants Boca Juniors.
After briefly leading two teams in Argentina during his playing career, Maradona was appointed head coach of the national team in 2008 and left the team after the 2010 World Cup, where his team was defeated by Germany in the quarter-finals.
He then led teams in the United Arab Emirates and Mexico and was responsible for Gimnasia y Esgrima in Argentina’s top division at the time of his death.
Diego Maradona was inspirational as captain when Argentina won the 1986 World Cup
The football world pays tribute
Brazil legend skin performed tributes to Maradona and wrote on Twitter: “What sad news. I have lost a great friend and the world has lost a legend. There is still much to be said, but for now may God give family members strength. One day I hope we can play ball in the sky together. “
Former English striker and host of the Match of the Day Gary Lineker, Maradona, who was part of the English team beaten by Argentina in the 1986 World Cup, said Maradona was “by far the best player of my generation and arguably the greatest of all time”.
Ex-Tottenham and Argentina midfielder Ossie Ardiles said: “Thank you, dear Dieguito, for your friendship, for your football, sublime, without comparison. Simply the best football player in the history of football. So many great moments together. Impossible to say which was the best. RIP my dear friend . “
Boca Juniors, where Maradona enjoyed two spells and retired, thanked their former player “forever”.
Paris St-Germain and Brazil striker Neymar posted a photo of him as a youth at Maradona, describing the Argentine as a “legend of football”.
England captain Harry Kane and striker Marcus Rashford also paid tribute.
Barcelona became the first club outside Argentina that Maradona played for. He scored 22 goals in 36 games between 1982 and 1984.
Another former Maradona club, Napoli, paid tribute. He played for the club between 1984 and 1991 and appeared 188 times.
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