Back to the International Newsfeed

'It was tough to pull that shirt on' - Mertens struggling after Maradona's passing as Napoli pay tribute

Dries Mertens said it was "tough to pull that shirt on" after Napoli wore the famous number 10 shirt in honour of Diego Maradona prior to their Europa League win over Rijeka.

Argentina and Napoli great Maradona – arguably football's greatest ever player – died of natural causes at the age of 60 on Wednesday.

Napoli's first match since the passing of their most iconic star this week was played out to the noise of songs and fireworks despite the empty stands at the Stadio San Paolo, where Maradona guided the Italian team to unprecedented Scudetto success in 1987 and 1990.