Maradona’s daughter claims wrong jersey is up for auction

Diego Maradona's eldest daughter claims that the Argentina shirt expected to sell for several million dollars when it is sold at auction this month is not the one her late father wore when he scored the infamous "Hand of God" goal against England.

Dalma Maradona said the shirt due to go under the hammer was actually the one worn by her father during the goalless first half of the 1986 World Cup quarter-final.

Steve Hodge, the former England player who says Maradona swapped shirts with him at the end of the game in Mexico City, is selling the shirt, which is set to fetch more than £4 million ($5.2 million).

Auctioneers Sotheby's strongly refuted Dalma Maradona's claims on Thursday, saying an external company had provided a "conclusive photomatch" that proved it was authentic.

Sotheby's also noted that Maradona himself had previously acknowledged swapping his shirt with Hodge in the player's tunnel after their 1986 World Cup classic.

However Dalma Maradona maintains the jersey her father wore in the second half, when he also scored one of the greatest goals in World Cup history, was in the hands of another owner, but declined to name them.

"It's not that one. I don't want to say who has it because it's crazy. He [Diego Maradona] said it. He said, 'How am I going to give him the shirt of my life?'" she told reporters.

"This former player thinks he has my dad's second-half jersey, but it's a mix-up. He has the one from the first half.

"We wanted to clarify that so that people who want to buy it know the truth," Dalma said in separate comments to Channel 13 television.

A Sotheby's spokeswoman told AFP: "There was indeed a different shirt worn by Maradona in the first half, but there are clear differences...