Throwback to Maradona’s famous interview: “Juve was my great dream”

It’s the World Cup season, therefore, we have a great alibi to recall the biggest enigma the sport has ever witnessed.

Of course we’re talking about Diego Armando Maradona, a man who symbolized the World Cup with all it’s highs, lows, glory and agony.

Between 1984 and 1991, the iconic Argentine represented Napoli. He led the southerners towards unprecedented success earning him a religious following in the city which stands still until this very day.

Naturally, the Partenopei’s rise prompted an inevitable rivalry with Juventus who were arguably the strongest club in Europe back in the mid-eighties.

But despite the great feud between the two sides Maradona apparently had great respect for the Bianconeri and their club president Gianni Agnelli.

The Guardian recalled a Maradona interview conducted by the legendary La Stampa journalist Bruno Bernardi back in 1992.

The iconic number 10 admitted that playing for the Old Lady would have been a dream, while chastising former Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi.

“Juve was my great dream and I would have been the player who keeps talking and screaming on the pitch, dragging his teammates, the type of player missing since the days of Roberto Bettega and Marco Tardelli, when Juve won everything,” said the late Argentine at the time.

“In Turin I would have collected titles, I would still be in a city where you can walk quietly down Via Roma without being harassed, like when I was in Italy those first few months, yet in Naples I couldn’t leave the hotel.

“Roberto Baggio is a champion, perhaps the only one along with Claudio Caniggia, who can become my heir, but he must suffer as he is currently doing for a couple of more years to gain experience and maturity.

“Juve is an extraordinary club and you have to take your hat off to the Avvocato [Agnelli]. He is too strong, miles away from [Milan’s owner Silvio] Berlusconi.

“I have a lot of anger towards Berlusconi: he is an egoist who has six foreigners not so much for strengthening Milan, but to weaken the competition. He is killing football.”