It's been 38 years. FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association) has traveled back in time to relive that day. Diego Maradona (Argentina) and his tangled history have suddenly reappeared from out of nowhere. Who is this man who has been summoned to the FIFA World Cup 'memory lane' against his will?
Heo Jung-moo, who was nicknamed "Akbari" and "Akchak-i" for his unbreakable determination as a "Taegeuk Warrior" at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. Thirty-two years later, a photo of the Korean national soccer team's second World Cup appearance has been released to showcase his 'valor' as a key midfielder.
I can still feel the sense of humiliation that Maradona, who was rising in the mid-air and shaking up the world at the time, felt as if he was not at all intimidated by the greatness of the game. In the Korea-Argentina match (1-3 loss) that opened Group A of the Group Stage on June 2, 1986 (local date below), Maradona's fighting spirit, which did not hesitate to use his body to narrow the radius of action and even commit fouls, left a deep impression on Korean fans. Although many media outlets around the world derisively called it "Taekwondo soccer," it certainly stood out for its unyielding determination.
"Diego Maradona, a player who was unstoppable unless the opposing defense committed a foul."
That's how FIFA began its tribute to Maradona. "In the coming days, we'll be publishing a series of articles in the Nouvelle Vague reflecting on the records set at each World Cup," FIFA said, summarizing the reasoning behind choosing Maradona as the first in the series.
The iconic photo of Maradona's screaming jersey as Heo Jeong-moo's body flew off the pitch is a fittingly iconic moment. In fact, it's a very familiar image to Korean fans. As the Korean saying goes, "Akbari Akdol is evil," and this photo has always represented the persistence of Korean soccer.
Maradona sets new FIFA World Cup record for most fouls drawn in a World Cup, away from Messi
So, what kind of record did Maradona set for fouls on the FIFA World Cup stage? The number of times he's been fouled. Maradona tops the list by a huge margin, with the second-place finisher not even close. It's hard to overstate how good he was at drawing fouls. For opposing defenses, fouls were often an unavoidable option.
Maradona played in three World Cups. From Spain 1982, to Mexico 1986, to Italy 1990, Maradona was a standout performer on the main stage. As the spearhead of "La Albiceleste" (the Argentine national soccer team's nickname for the sky), he led the team to one championship (Mexico) and one runner-up finish (Italy). In Mexico, where he won the Golden Ball (best player), he also won the tournament.
In these three World Cups, Maradona drew a total of 125 fouls - 36 in Spain, 53 in Mexico, and 36 in Italy. Considering that in the 1980s, when Maradona was playing, fouls were not as frequent as they are today, it's easy to see why this is an impressive number.
Compare that to Lionel Messi, who is second on the list as a junior in his country. That's 167% of Messi's 75 fouls.
The man most associated with Maradona in terms of fouls is Italy's Claudio Gentile. During the Italy-Argentina 2-1 win in the second group stage of the tournament in Spain, Gentile committed a staggering 23 fouls in his personal defense of Maradona. Gentile is the victim of a dishonorable record. In all of World Cup history, since the 1962 tournament in Chile, where fouls were kept, no player has ever been fouled more than seven times in a single game.
Gentile, whose foul record is as fearsome as it has ever been and likely ever will be, had a famous post-match quote. "Soccer was not made for ballerinas."
Even if she wanted to stop Maradona with a foul, it wasn't going to be easy. In this context, the words of England center back Terry Butcher, who drank the bitter cup of misfortune (1-2 loss) against Argentina in the quarterfinals in Mexico, are worth savoring.
"I think we had a consensus that we needed to kick Maradona, but the problem is he's a very difficult player to bring down."
In the end, England were unable to stop Maradona and had to settle for defeat. In that game, Maradona scored "the greatest goal of the 20th century," as FIFA puts it, and established himself as the "hand of God.
Heo Jung-moo also faced Maradona as a coach. They met again in the group stage of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where they lost 1-4.
Looking back on it later, he said.
"If I am the firefly, Maradona is the sun. As a player, he was more admirable than anyone else. His dribbling skills were so good that the ball seemed to stick to his feet. His passing vision was exceptional. Despite his short stature, his physique and elasticity were unrivaled. His soccer intelligence was unquestionably world-class."