Maradona ‘to sue’ AFA president

Maradona said that he had not taken any drugs or alcohol for six years [GALLO/GETTY]

Diego Maradona has said that he will be taking Julio Grondona, the president of the Argentine Football Association, to court, accusing him of spreading false information about his problems with drugs and alcohol.

In an interview published on Friday, Maradona told Clarin, a newspaper in Argentina, that he had not taken any drugs or alcohol for six years.

Grondona, 79, had implied in a television interview this week that Maradona was using them again.

“There are reasons for what happens [with Maradona] and everybody knows them,” Grondona said.

Maradona said he had contacted his lawyers about filing a case, though the timeline for legal action is not clear.

Maradona and Grondona have been at loggerheads since July, when Maradona’s contract as national team coach was not renewed.

Grondona, who had initially hired Maradona in 2008, had offered to keep him on, but on the condition that he fire some of his assistants.

When Maradona refused, he was dismissed and replaced by Sergio Batista. He has been unable to find work since then. 

Maradona has repeatedly accused Grondona of “betrayal,” and has also railed against Carlos Bilardo, the general manager of the Argentina team.

In an interview on Monday, Maradona accused Grondona of being senile, calling him “gaga” in Spanish and suggesting he was receiving treatments several times a year at an expensive Swiss clinic.