It was maybe essentially the most iconic picture of the 1994 World Cup within the USA.
A large-eyed Diego Maradona , crackling with depth, ran to the closest tv digital camera and screamed with pleasure after he netted an excellent group stage objective in opposition to Greece.
That may show to be his remaining objective in an Argentina shirt, because the South American icon would fail a medication take a look at after his aspect’s following match in opposition to Nigeria and by no means play for his nation once more.
How Maradona’s absence price Argentina at USA 94
The match in opposition to Nigeria was Maradona’s remaining worldwide look (Picture credit score: Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Photographs)
Maradona’s aspect went to USA as one of many favourites to win the event after having lifted the trophy in 1986 and misplaced within the remaining to West Germany 4 years later.
However after their talisman and captain was banned, Argentina would lose their remaining group recreation to Bulgaria, earlier than being dumped out of the competitors within the last-16 stage by a Gheorghe Hagi- impressed Romania.
Roberto Sensini gained 60 caps for Argentina (Picture credit score: Getty Photographs)
And one among Maradona’s team-mates in that group, Roberto Sensini , was in little doubt as to only how expensive the absence of his skipper, who ranked at no.3 in FourFourTwo’s record of the best gamers of all-time , was.
“Maradona was simply totally different from regular folks,” Sensini tells FourFourTwo . “He might do the whole lot – issues that we couldn’t even think about. He had unbelievable ease along with his left foot and can all the time have his place in historical past.
“I believe we’d have gained the 1994 World Cup had he not been banned. It was one other sensational aspect.
“We talked earlier in regards to the remorse of not having gained Serie A at Parma – with that World Cup, the remorse is maybe even better. The squad was good: we additionally had Fernando Redondo, Diego Simeone and Gabriel Batistuta … a group of names, actually superior to many different international locations.
Maradona had led Argentina to the World Cup in 1986
“However after Diego’s disqualification, we misplaced our lighthouse, our chief. We had been unable to alter our mentality, to play as a group with out him. I believe that with Maradona round we might have gained it.”
As an alternative, Argentina had been left to look at neighbours Brazil carry the trophy for a fourth time once they defeated Italy on penalties on the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, with La Albiceleste having to attend till 2022 for his or her subsequent World Cup win.
