Alemao, a former midfielder who achieved victory in Serie A with Napoli in 1990 alongside the late, legendary Diego Maradona, has expressed his profound remorse that his pal just isn’t current to have a good time the crew’s triumphant return to glory 33 years after their earlier achievement.
“It’s a pity Diego’s not here,” the 61-year-old Brazilian instructed Agence France-Presse (AFP) in an interview in his hometown, Lavras, within the southeastern state of Minas Gerais.
Seeing Napoli win the third “Scudetto” in membership historical past “would have made him really happy – it would have completed his party,” Alemao mentioned.
“He deserved to live longer than he did.”
The Argentine nice, who died in 2020 at age 60, led Napoli to their first two titles, in 1987 and 1990, incomes the everlasting adoration of the membership’s followers.
On Thursday, Napoli clinched the Italian league title for the primary time since, in what many are calling a brand new golden period beneath coach Luciano Spalletti.
Napoli had been Serie A runners-up in 4 of the previous 10 seasons – “good campaigns,” mentioned Alemao, by a crew that “never quite managed (it), for various reasons: they needed more depth on the bench, a play-maker in the midfield.”
But “they worked on it, and now they’ve pulled it off,” he mentioned.
Just do not ask him to place present star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Georgia on the identical pedestal as “El Diego” – there is no comparability, Alemao mentioned.
“Maradona was a genius.”
Enormous privilege
Ricardo Rogerio de Brito – Alemao’s actual title – nonetheless gushes when he talks about Napoli’s superb 1989-90 crew.
Besides Maradona and himself, it included fellow Brazilian worldwide Careca and Italian stars Ciro Ferrara, Andrea Carnevale and Gianfranco Zola.
“We had a very tight team and a leader, Maradona, with lots of positive leadership. He always thought we would win, he always motivated everyone, and that was extremely important,” he mentioned.
“Playing with him was an enormous privilege. I miss those days. It was incredible to be with the best in the world.”
Alemao, who performed for Brazil within the 1986 and 1990 World Cups, joined Napoli in 1988, after beginning his profession at Botafogo in Rio de Janeiro and Atletico Madrid.
He, Maradona and Careca – the crew’s solely foreigners – shaped a tight-knit group each on and off the pitch.
Fans in Naples idolized them not only for their magic with the ball, however for embodying the satisfaction of a poor southern metropolis generally handled with contempt by Italy’s wealthier north.
“It was always hard playing away matches. People were really aggressive. We were treated like foreigners, with banners calling us ‘Africans,’ as if that were an insult,” mentioned Alemao.
“But that just made us stronger.”
Fateful coin
Alemao performed a memorable position – although he would simply as quickly overlook it – within the heart-stopping race between Napoli and Arrigo Sacchi’s AC Milan for the 1990 title.
With 4 matches left and AC Milan main them by a degree within the league desk, Napoli have been taking part in away at Atalanta when somebody threw a coin from the stands and hit Alemao on the pinnacle.
He was taken to hospital, and officers controversially awarded the match – which was tied at 0-0 – to Napoli, 2-0.
AC Milan in the meantime drew in opposition to Bologna.
Napoli leapt into first place and by no means regarded again.
It has by no means been utterly clear simply how badly Alemao was injured beneath his golden curls, if in any respect.
Today, he downplays the incident.
“We didn’t even need those points (against Atalanta) in the end. We won the matches we needed to,” he mentioned.
“But AC Milan felt pressured… and that made things easier for us,” he admitted.
Now, a brand new technology has introduced the title again to Napoli, whose followers will perpetually bear in mind not solely Kvaratskhelia however the complete crew as heroes, Alemao mentioned – identical to the 1990 squad.
“As much as Neapolitans adore Maradona, they’ve always remembered all of us very fondly,” he mentioned.
“They know the whole team did it together.”
Source: www.dailysabah.com
