Memories of Maradona: Referee Bob shared pitch with superstar

THE recent death of Diego Maradona saw the football world unite in tribute to the gifted superstar’s career.

Football fans of a certain vintage will never forget watching arguably the greatest player of all time via TV coverage of the World Cups in 1982, 1986 and 1990.

For younger fans, clips online are the only glimpse they have had.

But one lucky Dundonian got to see El Diego at close quarters, both at the start of his career playing for Argentina, and as he was reaching his peak in the iconic blue and red of Barcelona.

As well as working as a DC Thomson compositor, Bob Valentine was a referee from the 1960s through to retiring in 1990.

Bob joked that his 40 year professional career was more like 25 due to his refereeing exploits around the world, where he met many of the sport’s greatest players.

But no stands out more than the Argentinian superstar, who even signed a football for him after their first meeting, on his international debut against the Republic of Ireland at Landsdowne Road,

Dublin on May 29, 1979.

Now 81, Bob, from Fairmuir, remembers the buzz around the teenager going into the game in Dublin.

“There was a lot of talk in the press around that time of this new wonderkid from Argentina, who was going to be the next superstar,” he said.

“After the match in Dublin, which finished goalless, I kept the ball, and the following morning I flew back to Glasgow alongside the Argentina team and officials.

“During the flight, I took the match ball out of my holdall and got the young Maradona to sign it.

“Like many players, his signature was more just a scribble.

“So I said to him: ‘Please print your name below your signature’, which he did.

“I still have that ball and, just last year after a picture of me with the ball appeared in the press, I received some offers of several thousand pounds to sell it. I refused all of them.”

But that wasn’t the last time Bob crossed paths with the Maradona, as he refereed him again during his ultimately illfated spell at Barcelona.

Bob said: “This was when he was older and was at his peak. He scored two that day and you can still see them on YouTube – he picked the ball up in the centre circle and chipped the ball over the goalkeeper’s head.

“He never came to my attention in either game as far as discipline goes, I just got to enjoy him playing.

“I refereed other great players like Graeme Souness and Trevor Francis, but none compared to Maradona.”

Bob officiated at a number of prestigious tournaments, including the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, the 1982 World Cup in Spain, the 1984 and 1988 European

Championships, and the 1986 UEFA Cup final between Cologne and Real Madrid.

And his brush with the stars of the game didn’t end there – he also had a ball signed by another international football great, Pele, at the 1982 World Cup.

He said: “I was appointed to officiate at two games in the north, based in Oviedo.

“Pele was the FIFA ambassador for the matches in that region. My first match was Austria v Germany, played in Gijon.

“This was the match that became known as the ‘Disgrace in Gijon’ or ‘Great Gijon Swindle’.

“Both teams knew that, if the final score was 1-0 to Germany, then both teams would qualify for the next stage.

“Germany scored on the halfhour mark. After that, tackling became fairly scarce and the score remained the same. So both went through.”

Despite the controversy, later that day Bob met Pele again and asked him to sign the match ball.

And almost 20 years later, he met him in the most unexpected of surroundings, closer to home, when he asked him to sign a piece of memorabilia featuring

Bob took charge of the Republic of Ireland v Argentina in 1979 – a match in which Maradona made his international debut.