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Diego Maradona "Ready" To Manage Napoli

Maradona has declared that he'll take on the manager's job at Napoli as soon as Aurelio de Laurentiis asks him to do it.

Giuseppe Bellini

Diego Maradona has been in the press plenty of late, between his visit to Naples for the dramatic home leg of the Coppa Italia semi-finals, and his appearance in court in a tax evasion inquiry. Most recently, he's in headlines in Naples for another declaration of love for Napoli, as well as a little more.

Maradona's now declared that as soon as Aurelio de Laurentiis is ready to have him, he'll gladly take on the manager's job at Napoli. Maradona and de Laurentiis are friends, so the idea isn't a surprising one, and is one that people have talked about in the past. Given his legendary status as a Napoli player, it certainly makes sense to think about.

That said, Maradona's managerial history is a checkered one. He managed a pair of Argentine clubs in the 90's without much success, and while he did manage the Argentine national team for three years, including during the 2010 World Cup, it was a time rife with controversy for la Albiceleste. Maradona got his home nation's side as far as the quarterfinals in the World Cup before falling 4-0 to Germany.

Of course, Rafa Benitez has made himself very secure with a debut season in Naples that's gone much better than most projected when he was hired. Fortunately he has more time to prove himself, as Maradona's next move is apparently back on to the field, as it's being widely reported that despite being a hard-lived 53, he's planning on lacing up his boots and joining a fifth-tier club in Argentina owned by his friend and lawyer.

No one's ever said that Maradona's not crazy, and apparently he's out to prove that once again...