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Wednesday, Apr 25, 2007
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Messi goal rolls back the years

London: Lionel Messi's spectacular goal for FC Barcelona brought back memories of just how good Diego Maradona used to be.

The recent news about Maradona has been sad. Fighting cocaine addiction and weight problems for years, the 46-year-old former Argentina captain has twice been admitted to a hospital in the last few weeks and was moved to a private psychiatric clinic on Saturday.

But no matter how bad it gets, no matter how many demons he fails to control, football fans will still remember Maradona's greatness on the football field.

In 1986, when Maradona led Argentina to its second World Cup title, the forward scored two of the most memorable goals of all time against England in the quarterfinals.

The first was the famous "Hand of God" goal, in which the diminutive Maradona jumped with England goalkeeper Peter Shilton and punched the ball into the net.

The sleight of hand gave Argentina a 1-0 lead, but the real magic came four minutes later with a goal that was voted the greatest of the 20th century.

Maradona received the ball in his own half, ran through a pair of England players and sprinted toward the opposing goal. He beat two more opponents, fought off another and faked out Shilton before shooting the ball into the net.

"You have to say that's magnificent," BBC commentator Barry Davies said after that goal. It was, and it was matched by the 19-year-old Messi on Wednesday.

Deja vu

Barcelona was playing Getafe in the semifinals of the Copa de Rey, and Messi was in nearly the same spot on his team's side of the field when he received a pass from Xavi Hernandez.

The current Argentina forward — this may sound familiar — ran through a pair of Getafe players and sprinted toward the opposing goal. He beat two more opponents, fought off another and faked out the Getafe goalkeeper before shooting the ball into the net.

It was another magnificent goal, and it brought the inevitable comparisons to Maradona. "It's true that it is very like Diego Armando Maradona's, but I think Messi accelerated even faster," Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard said.

Getafe coach Bernd Schuster came up with the same thought that millions of England fans have expressed over and over for the last 21 years.

"We should have fouled him," Schuster said.

Best thing

But the best thing about all the talk — and the videos of the goals being watched on the Internet — is that it gives football fans a chance to remember Maradona for his skill rather than his lack of self-control.

Besides that 1986 title, Maradona also led Argentina to the 1990 World Cup final, and helped Napoli win its only two Serie A titles. Maradona played for the Italian club from 1984-91 and helped it win the UEFA Cup and the Italian Cup.

In international football, Maradona scored 34 goals in 91 appearances for Argentina from 1977-94. He last played for the national team at the World Cup in the United States, where he failed a doping test and was sent home after two games. Argentina advanced from the first round but then lost to Romania in the second.

Maradona, who also played for Barcelona, retired from football in 1997Messi isn't quite to that level yet, but he's still only a teenager and has already matched Maradona's under-20 world title in 1979 by helping Argentina win another in 2005.

Messi has helped Barcelona win the last two Spanish league titles and the Champions League in 2006. Barcelona is also in first place in the league this year, though it was eliminated from the Champions League in the second round.

But regardless of titles and championships and awards, it was Wednesday's goal that will link Messi with Maradona forever. "It's impossible not to compare Messi's goal with Maradona's, but the comparison doesn't turn Messi into Maradona," said former Argentina international Jorge Valdano, who played with Maradona in 1986. — AP

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