Diego Maradona bloated, bedridden and resigned before death, says masseur

Diego Maradona was bedridden, suffering from edema and appeared resigned to his fate in his final days, according to the testimony of the Argentinian football legend’s masseur at the trial into the circumstances of his death in 2020 .

Maradona “wouldn’t get out of bed, he didn’t want to eat, he didn’t want to wash, he didn’t want to look after his personal hygiene”, Nicolas Taffarel testified on Thursday.

He claimed that at the time he had alerted the 1986 World Cup winner’s medical team that they should be more present and visit “every day”, as heard in an audio message played in court.

Seven healthcare professionals have been on trial since mid-April in Argentina for potential negligence that may have contributed to the football icon’s death.

“I reported the issues I observed with him, but I saw no concrete action or swift resolution,” added the masseur, on the verge of tears as he spoke of Maradona.

“The doctors told me to calm down, that these symptoms would pass. When you’re anxious, you put your trust in them; you tell yourself it will pass, that everything will sort itself out. But it didn’t pass.”

On November 24, the day before Maradona’s death, Taffarel told how he tried in vain to persuade him to come round and drink mate [herbal drink].

“He said to me: ‘I don’t want anything, Taffita, that’s it.’ I asked him: ‘What do you mean, that’s it?’ and he replied: ‘Nothing, that’s it’,” he said, quoting Maradona’s ambiguous words – “ya esta” can be understood as “it’s all right” or “it’s over”.