"Maradona is a modern Achilles". The portrait of De Giovanni

“Diego was a modern Achilles, an epic hero with his Achilles’ heel. A man capable of bringing Naples to the top of the world but marked by fragility and sensitivity that made him human and close to all of us”. Maurizio De Giovanni describes ‘his’ Diego Armando Maradona to AGI, on the fourth anniversary of the death of the most loved footballer in the world but above all in Naples. The writer, one of the most appreciated narrators of the Neapolitan soul, will be rewarded this evening in Portici, during the memorial organized by the “Naples 1926” fan group, for his commitment to telling the myth of Diego and the bond indissoluble of the Pibe de oro with the city.

For De Giovanni, Maradona was not only an extraordinary footballer, but an artist and a storyteller. “Diego told of a Naples that could win. He arrived at a time when this city was at its lowest point, bent by earthquake and clan wars. With his talent, he demonstrated that Naples could be great, that it could be on the front pages of newspapers for something other than crime. He was a visionary, a symbol of redemption”, he recalls. For him, Diego’s legacy goes beyond football: “Even today, even after the 2023 championship, he remains the most celebrated player. The number 10 shirts are the best-selling ones, because Maradona is the symbol of an identity and a hope that never stops living.”

“He would be a contemporary Achilles, a man with an extraordinary gift but also with human fragility which makes him unique – he says, giving space to his imagination which places the footballer inside an epic novel – Diego carried the weight of an entire city on his shoulders, demonstrating that redemption is possible. But his story is also that of a man who grew up in the extreme poverty of the favelas of Buenos Aires, marked by a pain that made him both great and vulnerable”. Often compared to iconic figures such as San Gennaro, Toto’ or Eduardo De Filippo, Maradona occupies a unique place in the Neapolitan pantheon: “He is the miracle that Neapolitans always wait for, the shortcut, the street boy who gets to the top without following the ordinary rules. He was not born here, yet he became more Neapolitan than anyone else. It is the very essence of the city: brilliant, passionate, imperfect, but capable of making the world fall in love with it.”

Today’s celebrations bear witness to this. In Portici, at 7pm, the memorial organized by “Naples 1926” will see the participation of historical figures such as Corrado Ferlainopresident of Napoli in the Diego years, and teammates like Beppe Bruscolotti, Bruno Giordano and Salvatore Bagni. During the evening, presented by Erika De Marino, awards will be given, in addition to De Giovanni, to personalities linked to the memory and values ​​of Maradona, such as Antonella Leardi and Maurizio Ercolanoparents of victims of typhus-related violence.

The groups from Curva B will lead a torchlight procession in front of the “Diego Armando Maradona” stadium, while Largo Maradona in the Quartieri Spagnoli will be the heart of a spontaneous homage, a tribute to the champion who continues to live in the heart of the city. “Diego taught us that victory is possible, that we can overturn a destiny that seems already written – concludes De Giovanni – his message is universal, and will continue to speak to the new generations, even to those who have never seen him play. Because Maradona is not just a memory: he is an eternal myth, a narrator who will never stop telling Naples.”