Guillermo Coppola: My bond with Maradona, everything but sex | OneFootball

The historic agent and friend of Diego Armando Maradona, shares his unique bond with the Golden Boy. A relationship made of successes, excesses, separations and reunions, which still deeply marks him today.

Guillermo Coppola: “My love with Maradona? Everything between us, except sex. I wish I had died in his place”

Guillermo Coppola, 76 years old, was one of the most influential football agents in South America. In Argentina, they call him "El Representante", a title that has also become the name of a TV series inspired by his life.

“I represented more than a hundred footballers, but I left everything for Diego. I had lights and shadows, like every man, but also a unique privilege: living next to the greatest in history”.

Maradona: genius and torment

For Coppola, talking about Maradona means evoking a myth that goes beyond football: “Diego was genius and torment, ecstasy and pain. A God of the ball and the show. To understand him, we must go back to Naples, the city that more than any other has made him eternal. Pope John Paul II once told him: 'You are more famous than me'”.

“Our love was physical”

Coppola does not hide the depth of the bond with Maradona: “From 1985 to 1990 it was just a professional relationship. After the World Cup '94, however, something different was born: an almost physical love. We kissed, we hugged, we shared everything. Only sex was missing, but if it had happened I would say it without problems”.

Separations, accusations and reconciliations

The relationship between the two was not always linear. Coppola remembers the accusations of embezzlement made by Diego: “He said I had stolen money from his daughters. I self-reported: not even a dollar was missing. Then we found each other again. Diego called me 'the ball of his life'. It was his most beautiful phrase”.

Coppola and prison

Coppola also lived dramatic moments: “I was unjustly imprisoned for 97 days on drug trafficking charges. In the end, the judges who condemned me ended up in prison themselves. During that time Diego's family was always close to me”.

The best Maradona on the field

According to Coppola, the best Diego was not the one from Mexico '86: “Everyone thinks of the World Cup, but for me the greatest Maradona was the one from the first Scudetto with Napoli. At that time he was happy, free and compelling. And then the young Diego from Argentinos Juniors, when the myth was born”.

Naples: destiny and eternal love

For Coppola, Naples was not a burden but the true destiny of the Golden Boy: “Naples made him eternal. The city was crazy about him. Once we celebrated his birthday on a ship and we were surrounded by hundreds of boats. Diego reciprocated this love, he will forever be a Neapolitan”.

“I wish I had died in his place”

Coppola confesses a deep regret: “Diego had promised me that he would carry my coffin, instead the opposite happened. I wished that he had survived me, to enjoy his children and grandchildren. If I could change something, I would only change the ending”.

About Maradona's death

Coppola remains cautious about the controversies related to the champion's disappearance: “I cannot accuse anyone. Justice will say if more could have been done. I only know that he died in a sad and lonely way. If I could talk to him today, I would thank him. And I would tell him that I love him, more than before”.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.