Brazil undone by Maradona magic
The late, great Diego Maradona rarely lacked in self-belief. But when Argentina, having struggled through the group stage at Italia 90, found themselves pitted against their oldest rivals in the last 16, he struck an uncharacteristically downbeat note.
“The Brazilians,” said Maradona, “are very strong better than we are.”
There was no false modesty in this statement, and Brazil duly set about proving their superiority in a one-sided match in which Alemao, Careca – two of El Pibe de Oro’s Napoli team-mates - and Dunga all struck the woodwork. Argentina, though, held on grimly and, with nine minutes remaining, Maradona produced his inimitable brand of magic.
Picking up the ball in his own half, he set off on a slaloming run towards goal that took him past three Brazilians and then, as four more converged, ended with him slipping a sublime pass through for Claudo Caniggia to score the game’s only goal. “That marvellous goal destroyed Brazil’s spirit,” Maradona would later reflect.
He was also angry at suggestions that one of the men he beat on that memorable run had gone easy on him.
“It annoyed me that Brazil’s press accused Alemao of not having brought me down because we were Napoli teammates,” he wrote in his autobiography. “Nonsense! I surprised him with my short sprint - that’s why he didn’t catch me.”
Claudio Taffarel, Brazil’s goalkeeper that day, focused instead on Brazil’s failings. “We played Argentina off the park but we lost,” he told FIFA+ recently.
“They only had one chance, created by that Maradona run, and they scored. We had 20 chances and missed the lot. That’s football, but I’m absolutely certain about one thing: A Seleção beat themselves at that World Cup.”