From Serie A glory to street hardship: Pietro Puzone’s tragic fall

Former Napoli forward Pietro Puzone, once a friend of Diego Maradona, was discovered this week lying intoxicated on a bench in Acerra, near Naples, and rushed to hospital. The 63‑year‑old, who celebrated Serie A triumphs with the club, is now receiving treatment for serious injuries.

Hospitalisation and legal steps

Authorities found Puzone lying on a bench under the scorching sun, still drinking, with cuts on his legs and arms. He was immediately taken to Villa dei Fiori Clinic, where he remains hospitalized while legal and health procedures are initiated.

"He is currently admitted to Villa dei Fiori Clinic for the necessary treatment and tests. His condition was truly serious. He had been lying on a bench for days under the scorching sun, unable to stop drinking. I do not know how much longer he would have survived. He had cuts on his legs and arms. Meanwhile, we have also started the legal and health‑social process to ensure Pietro’s recovery," said environmental activist Alessandro Cannavacciuolo on social media.

From Serie A champion to homelessness

Puzone rose through Napoli’s youth ranks and made his senior debut in 1982, appearing in nine matches for the Partenopei. He was part of the squads that captured the Serie A title and the Coppa Italia in the 1986/97 season, though he never became a star.

After leaving Napoli, he played for Cavese, Akragas Calcio, Catania, Spezia and Ischia Isolaverde before retiring in 1990.

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"He was the best footballer in the world, I was a young man who only cared about having fun. I didn’t know how to manage my talent, I lost every opportunity. I always went out at night with Diego. Life caught up with me. I spent years beyond my limits. Excessive popularity, easy money, vices. Diego and I went to discos, we had fun. With him, you knew what time you left, but not what time you would return home," Puzone recalled.

Maradona’s lasting influence

Puzone organised the famous charity match in which Maradona played in the mud to raise funds for a child with a severe cleft lip. He remembered Maradona telling him, "Pietro, you have to save yourself," a phrase that still guides him.

After hanging up his boots, he fell into a deep depression; his alcohol addiction caused him to lose his house and accrue debts he had never imagined. He spent years on the streets, his situation worsening until the recent intervention.

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A prolonged hospital stay and treatment, supported by Maradona’s encouragement, have helped him stabilise, yet he still needs further assistance to rebuild his life.