Rest in peace, Diego Maradona

Maradona, a World Cup winner with Argentina in 1986, is widely regarded as one of the greatest players ever to play the game - if not the very best.

In a career that was in equal parts mesmerising, dramatic, controversial and poetic, he single-handedly led his country to a World Cup win and also lifted Napoli to new heights, in a seven-year spell between 1984 and 1991 that left a lasting impression on the city.

Messages of mourning and commiseration poured in from players, clubs and fans around the world, as the news of his passing from a heart attack became official.

"We could say so many things about Diego Armando, the extraordinary player," said Roma great Paulo Roberto Falcao, a contemporary of Maradona, in a video message.

"About his leadership ... it is not easy to be a leader, to always be in the spotlight, always a newspaper headline and still be liked by your teammates. And Maradona was like that.

"Maradona was a demigod in football. With the ball in his feet he was a God. Without the ball... he was a human."

Roma legend Francesco Totti, who struck up a friendship with Maradona that saw the pair play in a number of charity games in recent years, also posted a tribute on social media.

"You wrote football history... goodbye, Diego," he said.

Rest in peace, Diego.