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‘Difficult to put on that shirt,’ says Mertens, Napoli’s all-time top scorer
Dries Mertens said it was “difficult to put on that jersey” after the Napoli player wore the famous number 10 jersey. in honor of Diego Maradona before his Europa League victory over Rijeka.
Argentina and Napoli’s great Maradona, arguably the greatest soccer player in history, died of natural causes at the age of 60 on Wednesday.
Napoli’s first game since the death of their most iconic star this week It was played to the noise of songs and fireworks despite empty stands at Stadio San Paolo, where Maradona led the Italian team to unprecedented success at the Scudetto in 1987 and 1990.
Captain Lorenzo Insigne laid a wreath before kick-off on Thursday, as Napoli’s team lined up in ‘Maradona 10’ T-shirts – a shirt that was retired long before Maradona’s death. The name of the World Cup winner was displayed around the edge of the field in Naples.
Reflecting on the emotional night, in which Napoli defeated Croatian visitor Rijeka 2-0, Mertens told Sky Sport Italia: “It was a terrible moment for me, so I can only imagine how those who lived their time at Naples must have felt.
“It had a great impact on this city and for everyone in southern Italy.
“I want to be positive and focus on my memories of a smiling man who loved football.”
“It was hard to put that shirt on,” he said. “In a way, it was always a dream, but not like this.”
