A PORTRAIT OF THE FILMMAKER AS A YOUNG MAN
In 1984, Diego Maradona left Barcelona. The Argentinian footballing genius had endured a difficult time at the Spanish club, and eyebrows were raised when he made his next move: Napoli. The Italian team were no big shots like Juventus or AC Milan. Rumours spread around the city that Maradona was coming, but no one could quite believe it. Until it happened. “He was something unbelievable for our season,” remembers Paolo Sorrentino. “For the first time arrived something that was joy.”
The Italian director of the Oscar-winning and was just 14 years old when Maradona fever swept his home city of Naples in July of that year. “He was definitely a symbol of hope for people, for the city,” says Sorrentino, puffing away on a small cigar as sits with him on a damp balcony in London’s Corinthia Hotel. Over the next few seasons, Maradona would deliver on that hope, winning Napoli its
