Nearby, Patricia Sánchez said Maradona “was like a father, and we were his children.” She stood with her son Ángel, who wore a blue and yellow Boca Juniors coat. Maradona played for Boca Juniors in 1981 before he moved to Barcelona, then returned there to retire as a player in 1997.There were no tears, only celebration in Villa Fiorito, where Maradona learned how to play soccer on muddy fields.