Ecstatic fans welcome Maradona to new job
SHOWS: LA PLATA, ARGENTINA (SEPTEMBER 08, 2019) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL)
1. NEW COACH FOR GIMNASIA Y ESGRIMA DIEGO MARADONA ARRIVING AT STADIUM ON GOLF BUGGY AND BEING GIVEN A SOCCER BALL
2. MARADONA WAVING
3. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE CHANTING "DIEGO" AND CHEERING
4. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) NEW COACH FOR GIMNASIA Y ESGRIMA, DIEGO MARADONA, SAYING:
"You are the ones who are going to give us victory, to win matches. And we are going to win, we are going to win."
5. VARIOUS OF MARADONA WALKING IN STADIUM WITH TEAM
6. MARADONA POSING WITH TEAM
7. MARADONA IN STADIUM WITH CLUB AND TEAM OFFICIALS
8. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CLUB PRESIDENT, GABRIEL PELLEGRINO, SAYING:
"Worldwide, we all know what he's done in breaking down all possible barriers. Rather than talking about this as the club president, I will talk about it as a fan. Maradona exceeds everything that we think of him."
9. VARIOUS OF MARADONA IN STADIUM
10. VARIOUS OF FANS IN STADIUM CHEERING
11. GENERAL VIEW OF TRAINING
12. DIEGO ON SIDELINES OF STADIUM
13. GENERAL VIEW OF TRAINING
14. GENERAL VIEW OF NEWS CONFERENCE
15. MARADONA TAKING SEAT AT NEWS CONFERENCE
16. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) NEW COACH FOR GIMNASIA Y ESGRIMA, DIEGO MARADONA, SAYING:
"I've experienced many beautiful things. The birth of my daughters, my children, I thought my heart was going to burst. And today, when I went out onto the field the same thing happened to me. Someone above me stopped me, someone above stopped me."
17. MEDIA AT NEWS CONFERENCE
18. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) NEW COACH FOR GIMNASIA Y ESGRIMA, DIEGO MARADONA, SAYING:
"I can't promise anything. As I told the boys (team), I am not a magician. Given today's welcome that (promise) would be enough, but no, I want more."
19. MARADONA AT NEWS CONFERENCE
20. MARADONA HOLDING UP CARD WITH CLUB CREDENTIALS
21. MARADONA POSING FOR MEDIA
STORY: World Cup winner Diego Maradona received a homecoming welcome in Argentina on Sunday (September 08) as the new coach for Argentine side Gimnasia y Esgrima, his first in his homeland since 2010.
Maradona, who was an erratic and brilliant striker and is widely considered to be one of the greatest players of all time, most recently coached in Mexico, where he led second division side Dorados of Sinaloa to two unsuccessful playoff appearances.
His new team, from the city of La Plata just outside Buenos Aires, was formed in 1887 and claims to be the oldest professional football club in the Americas.
Known as El Lobo or The Wolf, they have won just one professional title, the Copa Centenario, in 1993. They currently sit at the bottom of the first division table, with one point from five matches.
Maradona's return was eagerly expected and jubilant fans turned up at the club's stadium to welcome him.
It marks a working return to his homeland for the first time in almost a decade, following a spell in charge of the national side between 2008 and 2010. He also had stints as club coach at Mandiyu and Racing in the 1990s.
The 58-year-old won the World Cup as a player with Argentina in 1986 but has had frequent hospital treatment over the years, often due to his extravagant lifestyle.
Maradona was taken into hospital in 2004 with severe heart and respiratory problems linked to cocaine use. He later underwent drug rehabilitation in Cuba and Argentina before a stomach-stapling operation in 2005 helped him lose weight.
He resigned from the Mexican club Dorados in June, citing the need for operations on his knee and shoulder.
(Production: Horacio Soria, Paul Vieira)
