In the early morning of November 26, Beijing time, Argentine king Maradona died of illness at the age of 60. The world mourns the superstar, and Japanese football is no exception. Moreover, Maradona and Japan have quite a relationship.
At the 1978 World Cup, the young Maradona was excluded from Argentina's squad. However, by the second World Youth Championship in Japan in 1979, the 19-year-old Maradona, wearing Argentina's No. 10 jersey, was already unstoppable and shining in Tokyo.
Takashi Mizunuma, the father of Japanese football star and now Yokohama sailor winger Hirota Mizunuma, also met Maradona for the first time: "I saw him sitting on the couch, his thighs are really strong, not to mention the thickness, it is all muscle. I thought, Oh my God, this is the physical strength of a star who is about to go to the world! His judgment in the game was really strong, attracting opponents and passing the ball at the most wonderful moment, activating the whole team, he was just a 19-year-old player at the time. ”
At that time, many fans had already noticed the small player, and Kenta Hasegawa, who was leading FC Tokyo to the AFC Champions League in Doha, Qatar, was one of them. At the pre-match press conference against Shenhua, Hasegawa also talked about his impressions of Maradona: "I remember him being 5 years older than me and having memories of his game at the 1979 World Youth Championships. The 1986 World Cup match against England, when I was a university student, watched the livestream, and he was a player who had a lot of influence on our generation of football players. ”
Hiroshi Hara, who is currently the vice president of the J League, has played three times as a player against Boca Youth and Napoli led by Maradona, and Hara was also the captain of the Japanese team at the time: "I still remember the scene of shaking hands with him before the game. Although I was a striker in the game, I also had a defensive memory, and no matter how I chased at that time, I would be easily defused by him, which was really powerful. He was 2 years younger than me, but he died suddenly, which was a real blow. ”
Ramos, a well-known naturalized player in Japan and currently in charge of J2 Tokyo Greenery, represented the Japanese selection team against the South American Star team led by Maradona at the National Arena in 1987. For that game, the 63-year-old Ramos still remembers it vividly: "Whether it's shooting or dribbling, it's completely different levels. As a superstar, he is like Pele and Zico, a sun-like being. For his death, it is really regrettable. ”
Also in that match, Takeshi Okada, the current president of the J3 Imabari club, former Coach of the Japanese team and former coach of Greentown, Zhejiang, China, also participated. "I personally remember that he was playing like he was playing. Messi sometimes concedes the ball, but it's too difficult to grab the ball from Maradona's feet, his body is like a rubber band, and the power speed is explosive and bouncing. Although he has also done some bad things, he will still be forgiven by everyone. It can only be said that He is God. ”
Yasuhiko Okuter, who played in that match with Okada and Ramos, who had interacted with Maradona as captain and who had fought in the Bundesliga, recalled: "The scene of me entering with him with the captain's armband is still in my heart. His dribble no one can stop him. ”
In the early days of the J League, world-class stars were sought after, and Maradona was once a target for Japanese people waving money. The current JFL chairman, 76-year-old Katsuyoshi Kuwayuan, was the manager at the time, and he was the manager of the PJM Mirai team (the current J1 Tosu Sandstone predecessor).
In the autumn of 1990, Mulberry Flew to Naples, Italy, to meet maradona and conveyed his intention to invite him to join. Lao Ma's reply to Kuwayuan was: "Japan may be the last league I play in." Two years later, Maradona's younger brother, Ugo Maradona, briefly played in Japan, joining Japan's amateur leagues and JFL, playing for PJM Mirai, Fukuoka, Sapporo and other teams.
Photograph of Maradona's younger brother Ugo when he was playing for Fukuoka
In March 1993, a local correspondent of the Japanese media "Nikkan Sports" in São Paulo, Brazil, contacted Maradona's agent and finally did a 40-minute interview with Lao Ma. "You know, the first title I won was in Japan, at the 1979 World Youth Championships, so I had to 'go back to Japan' and I wanted to keep the first and last ones in Japan." However, after that, Maradona was ultimately unable to come to Japan to play football due to incidents such as drug bans.
Kozo Tajima, president of the Japan Football Association, said that he had intended to use the FIFA congress in May 2021 to invite Maradona to Japan again. "Every time there is a meeting, there are Legends games, so I was looking forward to seeing you next year, and I feel very sorry that the grief came so suddenly."
And Japan's new Chief Cabinet Secretary Kato Katsunobu also publicly stated to the media on the morning of the 26th, "Maradona is a national hero in Argentina, his performance in the 1986 World Cup is known to everyone, and he is really sorry for his premature death, and his merits will definitely be inherited by future generations!" ”
Others have publicly mourned Maradona's Japanese football community
Kazuaki Nagasawa (Masami Nagasawa's father): Looking back on his life, isn't the word groundbreaking appropriate? Emerging from extreme poverty, he became a star player. Including "God's Hand", his various words and deeds have made many fans crazy and worried about many fans.
Chira Miura: Thank you for all you have done for football, thank you, rest in peace!
Ito: I fell in love with Maradona because I watched the 1986 World Cup. He was only 60 years old, still very young, very surprised and regretted his death.
Former Garden True Sage: When I was in elementary school, I watched the video of overseas competitions, and what impressed me the most was Maradona's competition. The ball was like sucking on his feet, completely different from the other players, and I was completely attracted to him. So every day I imitate training, and the reason why I established my style with the ball as a weapon is because of Maradona. Closing my eyes, I can also clearly depict his performance, so in my heart I can meet him at any time. Thank you, Maradona.
Shunsuke Nakamura: I grew up watching Maradona play football. At that time, he deliberately bought video of his matches at the sports store, studying his dribble and free kicks. He is the existence of longing, which made me learn a lot.
Kenshiro Nakamura: Maradona died, and I still can't believe it. The first time I watched him play was at the 1986 World Cup and I watched him play many times. Maradona gave me a chance and a dream.
Shinji Ono: Maradona is the god who brings me the joy of football. Because of your presence, I have the desire to make the people around me cheer and start a football career, and I will work hard to be able to pass on happy football forever.
Yoshiki Muto: When I was in elementary school, my father bought a video of Maradona, and when he was a child, he was shocked and stepped up his training every day, without him, I would not have the current me. Thank you so much, rest in peace!
Don Anlu: On my birthday in elementary school, my teacher gave me a gift of maradona competition collection, and since then, my idol has been Maradona!