Maradona left Barcelona for the Azzurri, although Marino admits that it was a busy field to land the Argentinian icon.
“At that time I was the youngest director in the Serie A and to celebrate the safety of Avellino, I prepared a contract with Barcelona worth $ 100,000 to play a friendly one when they take Maradona,” Marino Radio Series A. said
“Only eight days before the competition, the intermediary who worked on the deal – FIFA agent Riccardo Fuiga – arrived in my office to warn me Barcelona arrived, but without Diego, because he had had a line with the club. He told me to find something for the 40,000 spectators.
“So, Fuiga suggested that I try to get someone on the Italian market to pick up Maradona. The only clubs who could pay him were Juventus, Sampdoria and Inter. I called all three, but none of them accepted. They all rejected me.
“Fuiga was stunned, he said how it is possible that we offer Maradona and cannot find a club?”
Marino was convinced that Napoli would benefit from the arrival of Maradona, despite the expenditures needed.
“A few nights before I had been with Antonio Juliano, the director of Napoli, who told me they were looking for a foreign player. I called him, initially he said no, but 10 minutes later recalled.
“The next morning we organized a meeting. And the rest is history.”
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