Its thirty-one years since Pele arrived at Kolkata. Now, the City of Joy is preparing to welcome another soccer legend Diego Maradona. Maradona will reach Kolkata this December on a promotional tour. The football-crazy city is waiting eagerly for the Argentinean soccer legend. In the much-awaited two-day trip, Maradona is expected to visit the Mother House and will then inaugurate a state-of-the-art sports facility at a fast-growing township off Kolkata.
Maradona’s expected trip in the first week of December will boost Kolkata’s spirit to new heights. The city have hosted stalwart German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn’s farewell match in summer,

with another German legend Karl Heinz Rummenigge expected to visit the Bengal district of Burdwan on December 12.

Shamik Lahiri, an MP from Kolkata is one of the key people behind the effort to bring Maradona to Kolkata. There are also many other figures working overtime alongside him to make the project work, including Indian Football School (IFS), event managers Celebrity Management Group and real estate bigwig Eden City. The launch of the new sports facility, IFS, at Maheshtala is the main focus of the organisers.

A three-member team had gone to Maradona’s residence in Buenos Aires last week to invite the star of the 1986 World Cup to Kolkata. Acording to sources, Maradona is expected to visit Kolkata accompanied by wife Claudia and daughter Dalma. He may kick-start his trip by launching the IFS centre in Maheshtala. It is expected that Maradona will visit the Mother House in Kolkata, run by the Missionaries of Charity.

The news of the Maradona’s visit to Kolkata has come out at a time when he is appointed as the new coach of the national team back home. This has pumped the enthusiasm among the football lovers to new heights. The Argentine Football Association (AFA) has formally announced the decision to appoint Maradona as coach of the senior national side.

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The former captain Diego Maradona will be now the new coach of the Argentina team. He was appointed as the new soccer coach on Tuesday. He had earlier lead the team to World Cup victory in 1986. The 48-year-old Maradona’s first game in charge will be a friendly against Scotland which will be held on Nov. 19 at Glasgow.
Diego Maradona calls this an honour. He assures excellent efforts to make the team outshine the rest of the teams in the soccer field. Maradona promises better days for the Argentina national team. Even though Maradona remains as a national hero, his appointment has raised eyebrows of many.

The decision has been questioned by local media and fans since its announcement in last week. Many soccer loves are concerned about his abilities to transform the playing skills into coaching expertise, and are wary of the star’s past troubles with drugs and obesity.

Maradona was flanked at a news conference by new Argentina manager Carlos Bilardo and Julio Grondona, the head of the Argentine federation.

Grondona brushed aside criticism saying that they are confident of MAradona’s ability and capacity. He says that MAradona would be able to reap better results as a coach. Maradona is replacing Alfio Basile, who stepped down on Oct. 16 after the 1-0 loss to Chile in World Cup qualifying.

Maradona has already made his first decision as the coach. He have replaced Javier Zanetti as captain with Javier Mascherano. He feels Mascherano is the “best suited player” as he brings together the necessary characteristics of “thinking, sacrifice, professional, being attentive to team mates.”

But anyhow, Maradona’s coaching team is in limbo. It seems that Sergio Batista and Jose Luis Brown, Maradona’s team mates in Argentina’s 1986 World Cup champion side, will be his assistants. It would be know in a few weeks that if Maradona is able to perform the same magic as coach like the one he showed on fields in mid eighties.

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