Fifa should retire No 10 shirt after Maradona’s death, says Villas-Boas

Fifa should retire No 10 shirt after Maradona’s death, says Villas-Boas

Marseille manager says withdrawal would be 'the best homage' for the Argentine great.

A man wearing a No 10 jersey waves to a mural of football legend Diego Maradona in Naples on Wednesday. (AP pic)
MARSEILLE:
Marseille manager Andre Villas-Boas has called on Fifa to retire the No 10 shirt from the game to honour Argentine great Diego Maradona, who died aged 60 on Wednesday after suffering a heart attack.

Maradona was regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, with fans in Argentina referring to him as ‘El Dios’ – which means ‘The God’, but is also a play on words on his No 10 shirt, ‘El Diez’.

Maradona’s former club Napoli have not used the No 10 shirt since 2000 as a mark of respect for the player who guided them to several trophies and Villas-Boas said global football body Fifa should also pay tribute by withdrawing the number.

“Maradona, yes it is tough news, I would like Fifa to retire the No 10 shirt in all competitions, for all teams,” Villas-Boas told reporters after Marseille’s 2-0 Champions League defeat by Porto.

“It would be the best homage we could do for him. He is an incredible loss for the world of football.”

Fifa has previously said it would not allow Argentina to dispense with the number.

Stay current - Follow FMT on WhatsApp, Google news and Telegram

Subscribe to our newsletter and get news delivered to your mailbox.