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The team comprised
a range of average players and one superstar: Diego Maradona. Frankly, they were not
much of a team without him.
Maradona captured
the imagination. He was adored in Naples for his heroics and still today, some
22 years after his departure, he is revered figure in the southern Italian city.
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Leaving aside the
details of his departure in 1991 and his free fall into drug addiction, one
could be forgiven for thinking that the Hyundai A-League in 2013 has another
Napoli on its hands. It’s just now called Sydney FC.
The modern day
sky blues of Sydney are an average team who are constantly towed along by the
indefatigable superstar Alessandro Del Piero.
Maradona, captain
of Napoli, was the best player in the Italian Serie A in his day; Del Piero,
captain of Sydney FC, is without peer in the Hyundai A-League today.
They are number
10’s in the greatest traditions of that number shirt. Like Maradona in Naples,
Del Piero is not a native of this city but he has captured the hearts and minds
of everyone involved.
Despite the official
line that Sydney FC is not a one-man team, the question has to be asked where
would they be without him? The statistics paint a clear picture.
When Del Piero
plays, Sydney FC scores and is most likely to win. When he is out injured they
are a completely different team. The yin and the yang of the Hyundai A-League
one could say.
So where will
this leave Sydney FC in the post Del Piero era? Who knows, but one thing for certain
is that this city will never forget him.
The legacy that
the little maestro leaves will last for many years. Let’s hope that while he is
here in Australia, we truly appreciate and comprehend that we may be seeing a
once-in-a-lifetime player in our city.
Del Piero is to
Sydney what Maradona will always be to Naples. The only difference is that he
will leave us without the ignominious exit.