Diego’s dying wish ignored by family

Buenos Aires – Few people had the power to say no to Diego Maradona in life but his family appear to have put their foot down on an unusual last request.

Maradona, who died from a heart attack on Wednesday aged 60, told friends during the coronavirus lockdown that when he died he wanted to be embalmed and put on show for fans, according to Martin Arevalo, a journalist who was close to him.

“When the idea of a statue first came up he said: ‘No, I want them to embalm me,’” Arevalo told TyC sports.

One of the people present when Maradona proposed the idea was his lawyer Matias Morla, who suggested the former Napoli and Boca Juniors forward formalise his request with a notary, something he did on 13 October.

The family, however, were set to bury Maradona alongside his parents at a cemetery outside Buenos Aires. –