The goal against Red Star Belgarde that made Barcelona fans fall in love with Maradona

As Barcelona FC is set to meet Red Star Belgrade, the expected game brings back memories of a famous goal. On October 20, 1982, Diego Maradona scored a lob goal against Red Star Belgrade, which unleashed euphoria among Spanish fans.

The match ended with a score of 4-2 in favor of Barcelona, with two goals by Maradona. With seven delicate touches, Maradona transported the ball to the edge of the area just at the moment time stopped. It was one of the most 'Maradonian' goals remembered, increased in value by the weight of nostalgia.

He executed an unbelievable lob shot that seemed to suspend in the air, which Carrasco remembered as "defying physics." A second of pause activated the magic of Maradona's left foot to invent a wonderful lob that mocked a disoriented Stojanovic, the Yugoslav goalkeeper who was caught halfway out.

"That goal changed the idea of the Barcelona fans about Maradona," said Tente Sánchez. "I remember they even started coming earlier to Camp Nou to see Diego's warm-ups. He did what he wanted with the ball: chest, shoulder, heel... What ball control! It was worthy of seeing, even with an apple he did it in the locker room."

"It was one of the most beautiful goals of my life, only comparable to one I scored with Argentina against the rest of the world team," Maradona himself later said. The 'Hand of God' and the 'Maradonian' goal against England would come almost four years later in Mexico '86.

The match between FC Barcelona and Red Star Belgrade took place in a stadium built in 1963, initially with a capacity of 55,000, which was doubled to 110,000 a year later. The stadium was compared to the old Maracanã, the temple of Brazilian football, because it had moments when it gathered up to 200,000 spectators.

At the start of the second half, the play began with Carrasco and Maradona. Carrasco said: "I gave it to him as I crossed the center of the field, I had to jump so they wouldn't foul me and I ran to his right in case he returned it to me to make a two-on-one when the center-back came out." Diego Maradona did not need support. With the ball controlled, Diego Maradona approached the area and dribbled past the defender.

Tente Sánchez analyzed: "It was a good team. The united Yugoslav national team always cost us. Their players were technical and physical. Red Star was the most powerful team in the country, on par with Real Madrid or Barcelona. Moreover, Belgrade then had a reputation as a dangerous city." Lobo Carrasco remembered: "That challenged physics. It was a wild chip, superior to a lob. The ball took a long time to come down."

Tente Sánchez narrated, "Everyone on the field, us and them, stayed still. It seemed it was going out, but no, not at all. It was going in." The ball seemed to suspend in the air. Lobo Carrasco summarized, "Now we are used to the bomb shots Navarro made in basketball. Back then, no. It was like a bomb."

Sánchez recalled, "The public applauded him. It was unusual because they were pressing a lot the rest of the 89 minutes." Suddenly, the people stood up to applaud the goal they had never seen before. Therefore, far from remaining silent, the stadium of Red Star Belgrade exploded with that lob. The collective applause lasted more than a minute.

In December 1982, Diego Maradona fell ill with hepatitis, which he could not imagine was coming. Less than two months later, in December 1982, Diego Maradona contracted hepatitis, which was actually the prologue to a catalog of misfortunes that did not allow him to be who he later was away from Camp Nou.

During that decade, FC Barcelona only won the Copa de la Liga, a tournament created by Joan Núñez, the Copa del Rey, and the Supercopa. These were minor titles, although the wonderful goal of Diego Maradona will always remain, which lifted the audience from their seats in the 'Pequeño Maracaná'.

Sources: La Vanguardia, Diario AS, El Peridico

This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq