I was never a big football fan myself, but Maradona had something extraordinary about him that even I could sense as a casual viewer. Somehow it felt like he was the greatest - not in terms of achievement or number of goals scored but in terms of that something inexplicable and impalpable about his whole character. I think Platini put it best: "Diego was capable of things no one else could match. The things I could do with a football, he could do with an orange."
His significance was also greater than that of any other footballer. He became a part of the pop culture - more than Pelé, Di Stefano or Messi ever did or would do. To me, he was the greatest and the most gifted ever.
Requiéscat in pace, pibe de oro.