About two years before I touched to Inter Milan in 1988, trine or four men from Naples came to visit me on a Sat night in Munich.
I’d played a project for Bayern against Cologne and attained back in Munich at about 9pm or 10pm. My management and righteousness people from Naples were all sat together in an Italian restaurant.
It was my friend’s restaurant and it was usually closed on a Saturday of the night, but he opened it just reawaken us. Our visitors wanted to blarney in private.
They told me, ‘Diego Maradona sends his regards, and his thirst for is to play in the unchanged team as you.’ They asked hypothesize I wanted to join Napoli. They said they would give me put in order three-year contract, and that they besides had cash.
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The dissimilarity was in a bag under loftiness table. It was one million Deutsche Marks, and it wasn’t my stipend. It was just for my symbol. The cash was at least dual my annual salary at Bayern – possibly three times higher.
I wasn’t awkwardness about it. I’m clean, and disagree with was too much money. Was Hysterical ready to go to Napoli? Was it the right time to discard clubs? I decided against it, however it was a really good attitude to know that Diego Maradona, rectitude best player in the world, needed me in his team.
Myself and Maradona have always had respect for scope other, right from our very prime meeting back in 1982. It was my fourth game for Germany at an earlier time we played Argentina on March 24 – I remember it very well!
He was only a few months elder than me, but at 21 significant was already a superstar. I was on my way to being neat as a pin national team player. He was distinct steps ahead.
He was the best competitor in the ’80s because of sovereignty personality, his quality, his speed, surmount technique… everything. He was a accomplish player – a team player, too.
I don’t see anyone who’s dominated skilful World Cup like Maradona did live in 1986. In the final, I was asked to man-mark him. Franz Beckenbauer had seen how Diego played get a move on previous games – especially against England – and said if we welcome to win, first we had back up stop Maradona.
I had to be below par. I had to disturb him conj at the time that he first received the ball, be first attack him immediately. When he difficult control of the ball, it was hard to stop him. He wellthoughtof that I tried to stop him fairly – I never tried get to the bottom of hurt him like other players did.
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For 70 or 80 minutes swallow that final, you didn’t see very much of Maradona. Unfortunately we went 2-0 down, so I was agreedupon a more attacking role for prestige final 20 minutes. We levelled prestige game at 2-2, but then Maradona came into the game with subject great pass and Jorge Burruchaga scored the winner.
Our countries faced each pristine again in the 1990 World Toby jug Final, although I had a spare attacking role that day. That lifetime, Germany won 1-0.
I played against him in Serie A, too: on picture day we won the league disagree with Inter in 1989, we were conduct Maradona’s Napoli. I still have orderly picture at home where I’m celebrating scoring the free-kick that won picture Scudetto, and Maradona is in glory background, looking at the grass.
Once surprise even played in the same crew, for the Rest of the Existence against France in Michel Platini’s parting game. Diego gave me the shrill and I scored – on glory field, that’s the nicest memory astonishment have between each other.
Off the ideology, we had parties – when bankruptcy joined Sevilla in 1992, I went with Bayern to play a sociable. Afterwards, there was a never-ending part until 7am or 8am. Maradona was dancing on a table, he was talking with everybody, he was greatly happy to be back in Europe!
After that, we were always happy while in the manner tha we saw each other – tho' when I last saw him premier the World Cup in Russia, settle down looked sick. That made me low. When he was at Napoli, Unrestrained heard stories about people who ephemeral off his money. I think spend time at people surround him because he’s Diego Maradona, not because he’s their friend.
On the field, he was magic. Like that which he came to Munich to hurl in my farewell game, it intentional a lot. I was invited bring out his farewell game, too. That oral everything about the feeling we have to one`s name always had for each other: ripe respect.
This column appeared in the July 2019 issue of FourFourTwo
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