Diego Maradona once played for and captained Bayern Munich, the rare footage is fascinating

Diego Maradona's long and illustrious career is usually associated with clubs in his native Argentina, Italy and Spain - but did you know he once turned out for German giants Bayern Munich?

Maradona is one of the finest players of his generation, stunning supporters worldwide during his time with Boca Juniors, Barcelona and Napoli.

You could say blue is Maradona's colour. After all, he helped Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986, almost single-handedly, in that iconic blue and white strip.

That's why football fans online are stunned after coming across footage of Maradona strutting his stuff for Bayern on TikTok. Check out the video below.

Seeing 'El Diego' in red and white feels so wrong. The game was in 2000, three years after Maradona's official retirement.

He still popped the ball around in trademark fashion despite being 40 years of age. One moment, in particular, saw Maradona control the ball before flicking it behind him with his heel. Unrivalled technique.

We know the question is on the tip of your tongue. Why did Maradona strut his stuff for the 32-time Bundesliga champions?

Well, he was selected to captain Bayern in a friendly against the Germany national team in Lothar Matthaus' final game as a professional.

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Maradona and Matthaus were rivals during their career, with Matthaus making 150 appearances for the Germany national team. He spent 12 years at Bayern across two separate stints as well.

Famously, Maradona called Matthaus his greatest opponent after going to war in the 1986 and 1990 World Cup final.

That respect is so strong, Matthaus refused to sell Maradona's jersey he received following the 1986 final. He instead donated it to a museum.

A remarkable gesture given how keen everyone was to auction off their memorabilia following Maradona's death in 2020.

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Matthaus told the Daily Mail in 2021: "I will never, and have never, had a greater compliment. Diego was the greatest of my time. No person on earth had done what he made possible with a football.

"We played in each other's farewell games, but only once in the same team, Michel Platini's farewell match in Seville in 1988. He gave me the pass for my goal. Afterwards, we had an unforgettable night on the beers.

"Diego is a god in Argentina, that is why it was special to give them the jersey."

Topics: Diego Maradona, Bayern Munich

Daniel Marland

Daniel is a social editor for SPORTbible after moving from the writing team. Nearly scored past Stormzy at Old Trafford once.

@DanMarland_