Oasis and the England football team became inextricably linked this summer, with ‘Wonderwall’ becoming the fans’ unofficial national anthem during their journey to the semi-finals.
Unfortunately for the travelling supporters, they will not be belting out the hit Britpop song at this Sunday’s final. Instead, they will have to make do with serenading the squad at the so-called ‘Bronze Final’, a consolation prize that neither England nor France want.
It was old foes Argentina who put the Three Lions to sword with a 2-1 win, just like they did in 1986 when the late Diego Maradona put in one of the most iconic performances of all time.
Despite killing England’s dream with the Hand of God, there remains a great reverence for Maradona for many people in the country. Maradona could count Oasis frontmen Liam and Noel Gallagher among his admirers, who paid tribute to the legendary footballer while performing in Buenos Aires during their comeback tour.
The Gallaghers randomly met Maradona in a bar while gigging in Argentina back in the nineties and it was an extraordinary experience, according to Liam. In a 2017 interview with VICE, he told the wild story in full.
The night Diego Maradona threatened to have Oasis shot
“We were in Argentina, we had done a gig and the next minute we were sat in the bar having a fucking drink, and then about 30 people have come, legging it in. It was like the Ant Hill Mob,” Liam said.
“And we were going ‘who the fucking hell is that?’ Sting was at the bar crying because he’d fucking had his dressing room robbed.
“And, anyway, so I found out it was Maradona, who had gone upstairs with a load of fucking madheads, and a load of fucking women of the night.
“So we were going ‘Look, can we just go up and meet him?’ like that to the fucking interpreter.”
Liam Gallagher’s story on meeting Maradona is NSFW… 😱
🎥 NOISEY pic.twitter.com/KKSqkyqf90
— Empire of the Kop (@empireofthekop) August 10, 2017
The Gallagher brothers were allowed up to meet ‘El 10’ himself while the rest of Oasis waited behind, but were a bit shaken by what they encountered, which says a lot coming from them.
Liam revealed that Maradona was playing keepie-uppies with a bottle top, while his eyes were bulging wide “and ours weren’t far off.” The younger sibling suggested they get a photo and leave, but not before Diego gave them a warning.
The interpreter translated the message for him thusly: “He says ‘He’s told me to tell you that if you leave with any of his bitches, he’ll have you shot’.”
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