Former England striker Gary Lineker has been forced to defend himself on social media after his tribute to Diego Maradona received backlash.
The controversial Argentinian, who dumped Lineker’s England side out of the 1986 World Cup en route to lifting the iconic trophy, passed away in his home aged 60 after suffering a cardiac arrest.
As news broke, Lineker was amongst the first to extend his sympathy and label Maradona “arguably the greatest of all-time”.
Lineker tweeted: “Reports from Argentina that Diego Armando Maradona has died.
“By some distance the best player of my generation and arguably the greatest of all time. After a blessed but troubled life, hopefully he'll finally find some comfort in the hands of God. #RIPDiego.”
Despite his praise for Maradona, some were left angry with his reference to the infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal the Argentinian scored against England in the 1986 World Cup.
Amongst those to hit-out at Lineker was Brazilian journalist Eduardo Monsanto, who said: “Show some respect. Being an a**hole does not fit you, or so I thought.”
It forced Lineker to defend his tweet as he replied: “Sorry, where's the disrespect?’”
The Brazilian continued the conversation, writing: “Come on... we both know what you meant. There's an entire country mourning the loss of their favourite son. This is no time for double meaning..."
“Your misunderstanding is complete,” Lineker hit back.
Another stated: “Not the time to make puns Gary”, but he replied: “Don't be ridiculous. It's heartfelt.”
In response to a later tweet defending him, the former England striker said: “'Thank you. Can only imagine it's a translation issue.”
In the run-up to the 2006 World Cup, Lineker tracked down Maradona for a documentary.
When they first shook hands, Lineker said: “Which hand was it, this one?” As Maradona played along and lifted his left hand.
The Argentine hero appeared to play up to the controversy caused by the incident in the years leading up to his death.
In 2019 he said: “I knew it was my hand. It wasn't my plan but the action happened so fast that the linesman didn't see me putting my hand in. The referee looked at me and he said: ‘'Goal''.'
“'It was a nice feeling like some sort of symbolic revenge against the English.”
In a recent interview this year, he said: “I dream of being able to score another goal against England, this time with the right hand!”