Diego Maradona’s brother, Hugo, dies at 52

Hugo Maradona dies a year after his brother Diego Maradona [photo courtesy]

Napoli paid tribute on Tuesday to Hugo Maradona, younger brother of the Italian club’s former great Diego, following his death from a heart attack at the age of 52.

The Argentine, who was also a professional footballer and joined Diego at Napoli in 1987 aged 18, died at his home near Naples, Italian news agency ANSA reported.

Diego Maradona, widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, died at the age of 60 in November, 2020 due to a cardiac arrest.

"The thoughts of club president Aurelio De Laurentiis, vice president Edoardo De Laurentiis, officials, coaching staff, the players and the whole SSC Napoli family are with the Maradona family after the sad passing of Hugo," Napoli said in a statement.

Hugo Maradona failed to make an impact at Napoli and went on to represent clubs including Ascoli and Rayo Vallecano during a nomadic playing career across Europe, South America and Japan.