Diego Maradona "shone a very bright light" despite his well-documented struggles off the pitch, his British former agent told AFP. Jon Smith, who pioneered the role of "super agent" in the world of football, said the player who almost single-handedly drove Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title was a Jekyll-and-Hyde character. Smith secured Maradona as a client after the 1986 World Cup finals by luck after two cancelled meetings, when he happened to be at Ossie Ardiles' house. Ardiles, a 1978 World Cup winner with Argentina who had joined English club Tottenham, was on the phone to Maradona, who was looking for an agent, and the rest is history. "There were too many temptations, but for all the dark corners he shone a really bright light."

Source: News 24 November 26, 2020 14:37 UTC