A story from history | When Maradona came close to wearing Dundee's shirt

Diego Maradona's story with Dundee FC began in an unexpected place when Italian Ivano Bonetti took over as manager of the team in the summer of 2000, at a time when the club's new owners were looking for a more exciting and ambitious project.

Bonetti has received a large budget for signings and has begun building a multinational team, but the results have not met expectations. In an attempt to address the attacking deficiency, his brother Dario brought in Argentine striker Claudio Caniggia, who had previously played with him at Hellas Verona.

Kaneji, aged 33, was without a club and had not been playing regularly since 1996, but he joined Dundee for six months. He soon became one of the stars of the team, scoring on his debut against Aberdeen, and turned into a hero for the fans, to the extent that Dundee's match against Dunfermline Athletic was broadcast live in Argentina.

Since arriving at Dundee FC, the name of his close friend Diego Maradona has been echoing around Dens Park. After Kanigia renewed his contract for two and a half years in early January, the whispers turned into a real plan, as the club announced that there were communications with Maradona and his representatives regarding his desire to play a friendly match with Dundee FC against SSC Napoli.

Excitement has swept the city, with Dundee's tourism board CEO Colin Smith seeing it as an opportunity to elevate the city's status. Midfielder Georgi Nemsadze stated that Maradona had already sent his approval via fax and that he would receive £250,000 for a single match.

Everything seemed ready, but the story took a surprising turn when Maradona arrived at Fiumicino Airport in Rome, where he was planning to attend SSC Napoli's match against Hellas Verona and meet with club official Corrado Ferlaino. There, he was informed by the police that he was under investigation for tax evasion allegations amounting to £16.6 million.

Dundee FC's hopes of hosting the match have collapsed due to the crisis, and Bonetti stated that the chances of Maradona appearing with the team during the season are now nonexistent, despite confirming that the Argentine star had expressed his willingness to play.

The plan ultimately ended in May when Caniggia left Dundee FC to join Rangers, while the Bonetti family remained at the club for another year before their departure. By the end of 2003, Dundee FC entered administration after accumulating debts nearing £20 million.

As for Maradona, the idea of him appearing in a Dundee FC shirt remained just a story that was not completed, after the city had already come close to witnessing one of the greatest football players in the world at Dens Park.