Nottingham Forest legend Steve Hodge has reportedly received a last-minute appeal from the Argentinian FA not to sell the shirt worn by Diego Maradona in the infamous 1986 World Cup meeting between Argentina and England.
Former Forest midfielder Hodge swapped shirts with the legendary Maradona after the 1986 World Cup quarter-final clash between England and Argentina in Mexico, and has owned it ever since, although the item has spent the last 20 years on loan at the National Football Museum in Manchester. Maradona – one of the greatest footballers of all time, who died in November 2020 at the age of 60 – famously scored two unforgettable goals in the match, including one assisted by the "Hand of God", as England were knocked out of the tournament.
Hodge has let the shirt go under the hammer in a specialist auction, with a bid already placed at £4 million; but the Forest hero is said to have been asked to undergo a dramatic U-turn ahead of the auction closing later today, with the Argentinian FA begging for the shirt to be looked after rather than be sold.
