Football legend
Diego Maradona successfully operated on for cerebral haemorrhage
Diego Maradona in December 2017
© Alexander Nemenov / AFP
Argentina’s soccer legend Diego Maradona has undergone an operation after a brain hemorrhage. According to his doctor, it was a routine procedure.
The Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona has had an operation for a brain hemorrhage. “The Maradona operation is over and it was a success,” wrote his press spokesman Sebastián Sanchi on Instagram on Tuesday. “Everything went as planned. Diego is fine and he is now resting in his room.”
Maradona’s personal physician Leopoldo Luque had operated on the 1986 world champion in a clinic in Olivos north of Buenos Aires for a subdural hematoma. This is a bleeding between the hard meninges and the brain. Before the operation, Luque had spoken of a “routine procedure”. Maradona was rushed to a hospital in La Plata on Monday. Initially, there was only talk of emotional stress, anemia and dehydration. The bleeding was discovered during the tests.
Blood clot discovered in Diego Maradona’s head
Luque said Maradona’s problems had nothing to do with the corona pandemic. Maradona had gone into quarantine a week ago because of a suspected corona case in his area. After the suspicion was not confirmed, however, he insisted on training on his 60th birthday with the first division club Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata, of which he is the trainer. Obviously he was out of shape. He could barely walk and left the field after a few minutes. His daughter Gianninna later said on the online service Twitter: “It breaks my heart to see him like that.”
Maradona has been suffering from serious health problems for many years, not least because of his previous drug addiction. In 2000, he received treatment in Cuba for severe heart problems. In 2004 he had to be treated with life-threatening heart and lung problems in Argentina, in 2007 he was hospitalized again because of his excessive drinking. He was fitted with a prosthetic knee last year.
