Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has sent fraternal greetings to Argentine football legends Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi, who marked his 27th birthday on Tuesday.
“Unforgettable friend, every day I have the pleasure of following your program on Telesur on the spectacular World Cup thanks to which I can follow the extraordinary level of this universal sport,” Castro, 87, said in a message to Maradona, who works as a commentator for Venezuelan channel Telesur.
He also saluted Messi, whose goals have taken two-time champions Argentina into the last 16.
“I also greet Messi, a superb athlete who confers glory on the noble people of Argentina.
“Nothing can surpass the glory and prestige of both, despite the miserable efforts of schemers” to bring either of them down, Castro enthused.
Castro added that although politics has dominated his life, “as a child, adolescent and young man” he was a keen sportsman.
“I do not think children from any country can receive an adequate education which does not include sport and, where boys are concerned, football,” he added.
Maradona and Castro have been friends for more than a decade – Maradona regularly came to the Caribbean island for treatment as he recovered from drug abuse.
Maradona said he was delighted to have received Castro’s greetings, describing his friend as “the greatest of all.”
Source: Super Sport