People often compare El Diego and Lionel Messi's styles on the pitch but off the field it's in their wholesale dislike of taxes where their similarities begin and end. During his seven years at Napoli, Maradona is alleged to have paid little to no tax, claiming that he had no idea he was expected to pay it. Authorities in Italy have calculated his debt to the treasury at £33 million (with more than half of that being accumulated interest) but El Diego doesn't see it that way:
"Why do I have to pay and not them, when I gave my life to Napoli? I am not a victim because I have earned a lot of money but I didn't know anything about the contractual issues."
So far the Italian authorities have apparently managed to reclaim only around £40,000 of the debt, including two Rolex watches and a pair of earrings which were confiscated from him at a health centre in Northern Italy.
