Goa govt to install statue of football great Diego Maradona

The Goa government
will pay tribute to football legend Diego Maradona by installing a life-size statue
of the Argentine in the North district’s coastal belt by next year, a minister
confirmed to PTI on Wednesday.

Calangute
MLA and the state’s Ports Minister Michael Lobo told PTI that the statue is currently
in the making with a Maharashtra-based artist working on the mould. The
installation of the statue was announced in 2018.

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“The statue
would be installed somewhere at Candolim or Calangute to inspire the football
playing youth,” Lobo said.

“It is an
actual-size statue as tall as late Maradona,” he said.

Lobo further
stated that the mould of the 350-kg statue is ready and it is part of the state
government’s initiative to encourage football culture.

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Lobo said
that the state will also dedicate a statue to Portuguese superstar Cristiano
Ronaldo, which is also currently in the making and will be installed in the North
district.

Widely considered
as the greatest footballer of all time, Maradona died at the age of 60 following a cardiac
arrest on Wednesday, weeks after undergoing a surgery to remove a blood clot in
his brain.