Pope Francis calls Maradona a fragile poet; decries doping cheats

Pope Francis meets Diego Maradona in Rome in 2014. [Pier Marco Tacca / Getty Images]

Pope Francis has hailed fellow Argentine Diego Maradona as a "poet" on the pitch, but also acknowledged his frailty away from the sport.

In a wide-ranging interview with Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport published on Saturday, Francis recalled his own days playing soccer as a child with a ball made of rags and laid bare his scorn for doping cheats.