Maradona's death resonated beyond football with sporting icons such as Mike Tyson and Magic Johnson paying rich tributes and recalling their encounters with the football wizard.
'On doctor's advice he will dedicate his time to his health and have two operations, on his shoulder and his knee'
Pochettino, who is well aware of Messi's game-changing abilities having worked with the 35-year-old last season, said he was still the best player in the world.
Lionel Messi kept his dream of winning his first World Cup alive by rifling in the opening goal in Saturday's 2-0 victory over Mexico in World Cup Group C, proving he was far from done in the tournament.
Lionel Messi has surpassed Diego Maradona as the greatest player of all time, Argentina's World Cup winning coach Lionel Scaloni said.
Messi's Instagram post with the Copa America trophy has become the platform's most-liked sports photograph.
Argentine soccer great Diego Maradona was released from hospital after being admitted earlier on Friday with internal bleeding in the stomach which was discovered during routine examinations, his daughter Dalma said.
New Jersey awarded 2026 World Cup final, Mexico gets opener
Franz Beckenbauer was for decades synonymous with Germany's success on the pitch, as player and then coach.
Diego Maradona may be a giant of the game's history, soccer's governing body FIFA said on Friday, but even he must show respect to other fans at World Cup stadiums.
'I start my 60th with these marvellous messages that you've all sent me. Thank you.'
Pope Francis is a lifelong fan of the Buenos Aires San Lorenzo soccer team.
Argentine football legend Diego Maradona has reportedly been accused of assaulting his former girlfriend, who has video footage of an altercation in which the football icon allegedly hit her.
Not only the senior team but the young Blue Colts also emerged victorious in the SAFF Men's U-19 champions after hammering Pakistan in the final and clinching a vigorous 3-0 victory.
Emiliano Martinez said he had always wanted to come to India.
The Argentines suffered one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history
"The people who have seen Pele, Alfredo Di Stefano or Diego Maradona. The opinions are sentimental, but the other side, if he (Messi) wouldn't have won the World Cup, the opinion and my opinion wouldn't change."
The death of Maradona has highlighted the almost cult-like adoration that grew up around the player nicknamed "el dios" (or God), who mesmerised on the pitch and inspired fans off it despite long, public battles with addiction.
Lionel Messi's passionate performances at the Qatar World Cup are earning him oodles of love from Argentines, but their old favouritism for Diego Maradona may resurface unless he brings home the trophy on his final attempt.
Captain Lionel Messi inspired Argentina to an emphatic 3-0 victory against Italy in a heavyweight clash billed as the 'Finalissima' in London on Wednesday.
He was among the millions left speechless by Sachin Tendulkar's farewell speech and former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly said the retired legend can only be compared to football great Diego Maradona when it comes international sporting icons.
Former Argentina captain Diego Maradona has been handed an ambassadorial role by the game's global governing body FIFA.
Legendary Argentine World Cup winner Diego Maradona died following a heart attack on Wednesday, aged 60.
Many flocked to Buenos Aires's tattoo parlors to commission designs depicting Lionel Messi.
The duo has constantly been compared in terms of their playing style, in addition to having represented Spanish giant club Barcelona and captained Argentina.
'It was a signal really, because it was the first goal in a tight game. When he cheated, a lot of the players as well as me complained... I was chasing the referee. But it stood.'
British daily The Times splashed "In the hands of God" with the image of Maradona celebrating after beating West Germany in the final of the 1986 World Cup.
Neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, psychologists Carlos Diaz, Dahiana Madrid and Ricardo Almiron, doctor Nancy Forlini and nurse coordinator Mariano Perroni were last week charged with involuntary manslaughter.
A sense of euphoria was in the air in the country, particularly in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Palermo, where thousands of jubilant fans crowded to watch the match on a giant screen in the park.
Maradona backs Venezuela's Maduro, signs for World Cup coverage
Long before Messi, long before Ronaldo, there was M-A-R-A-D-O-N-A!
An Argentine football club has recreated the Sistine Chapel on the ceiling of its gymnasium, with Diego Maradona as God, Lionel Messi as Adam and a host of angels that include Mario Kempes, Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Batistuta.
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Argentine football legend Diego Maradona has allegedly been filmed fighting in the streets of Dubrovnik, Croatia outside a local nightclub to make his behaviour come under the spotlight once again.
For Argentina players and captain Messi, who netted twice in the 120 minutes before also scoring in the shoot-out, it was the biggest title of their careers.
'I have had it for 34 years and have never once tried to sell it. I like having it. It has incredible sentimental value.'
In December 2017, Diego Maradona turned up in shorts, enjoyed every bit of the maddening attention even though the gruelling session in Kolkata literally drained him as he was seen drenched in sweat, pouring water on his head.
Argentina and Australia have only two full days to rest, a factor Argentine manager Lionel Scaloni called 'madness'.
A hat-trick from Vinicio Angulo helped get Diego Maradona's managerial career in Mexico off to the perfect start on Monday as his new club Dorados beat Tapachula 4-1 in Culiacan.
Richard Giusti, who played with Maradona at the 1986 and 1990 World Cups, said it was impossible to compare him to Messi, who with his goal in the 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabia became the first Argentine to score at four different World Cups.
