Maradona's Problems

                                                              Maradona's Real Potential    


     Arguably the most famous non-performance enhancing drug case in sports due to soccer’s worldwide appeal. Despite his drug problems, Maradona is still regarded by many as the greatest soccer player of all time. Most experts would choose either Maradona or Pelé. Maradona played for various clubs in his career, including Boca Juniors, FC Barcelona, Sevilla, and SSC Napoli. He also represented Argentina in a number of international games, including leading Argentina to victory in the 1986 World Cup. He also captured the Golden Ball award as the tournament’s best player.
Still, despite his considered success, Maradona has had several drug problems. A long running addiction to cocaine affected his play starting in the late 1980s, eventually leading to a fifteen month suspension in 1991 for testing positive for the drug. It also led to him changing teams.


     At the 1994 World Cup, he was sent home after failing drug tests, reportedly for ephedrine. And he would retire in 1997 at age of 37 after failing yet another drug test. In 2000 he collapsed of heart problems, and collapsed again in 2004 before kicking his cocaine habit. All told, Maradona was a fabulous player, but one who could have been even better without the drug issues.  His international success helps obscure some failures at the club level. Nearly half his career was affected by drug use, and for a player that fantastic, any time he wasn’t 100% was a shame for soccer and its fans.
 


  
  At the end of the day, Maradona had a good career but everyone knows that if he would've kept the drugs out of his professional career, then he could've exceeded expectations of everyone and probably been better than his rival during the time Brazilian legend Pele.