Diego Maradona plunge into drugs and connection with the Italian Mafia in a new film
What you need to know:
A new documentary on Diego Maradona unearths his darker days in football, revealing how he struggled with cocaine addiction and links to the Italian mafia
London. A new film about Diego Maradona enigmatic career is set to hit cinemas on June 14 and it has already excited his legion of fans.
The new Diego Maradona documentary will unearth the Argentine's dark past when it comes to his cocaine addiction and his secret links to the Italian mafia.
Directed by British filmmaker Asif Kapadia, the film charts his rise to the top of world football and the difficulty that plagued his later years, which has been constructed from over 500 hours of never-before-seen footage from the player's personal archive.
According to UK’s Daily Mail, Fans are given behind-the-scenes access to all of his wild parties, car chases and an intimate view to the life of arguably the greatest ever footballer.
During his time at Napoli, the film explores his struggles with cocaine and how he avoided getting caught by the football authorities.
In an interview with Asif, Maradona reveals: 'Sunday to Wednesday I was partying on cocaine. I would come home high on drugs.
'When I saw my daughter I would be afraid and lock myself in the bathroom.'
The Argentine forward would always manage to pass the mandatory drug tests by using a fake plastic penis which contained other people's clean urine.
Napoli president Corrado Ferlaino – who admitted giving players who were about to be tested a small bottle which was filled with drug-free urine – said: 'Probably someone else peed for him.
The film also explores Maradona's close ties with the Camorra crime cartels who played a part in getting him hooked on the white powder.
Maradona even revealed that drugs were extremely accessible during his Napoli days.
Maradona once said: 'In Napoli, drugs were everywhere. They practically brought them to me on a tray.'
While the documentary is set to be a huge hit with sports fans, the man himself has refused to support it despite it being largely sympathetic towards him.
The 58-year-old also refused to attend it's premiere at Cannes Film Festival last month.
The World Cup winner complained about how he is portrayed, without actually seeing the film, by complaining about the poster's tagline which read 'Diego Maradona: Rebel. Hero. Hustler. God.'
Maradona insisted: 'I didn't hustle anyone. I don't like the title. I'm not going to like the film. Don't see it.'
