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Argentine football legend Diego Maradona kissed and hugged the referee who allowed his infamous hand of God goal in the 1986 World Cup after meeting him on a trip to Tunisia this week.

The star was in the country to record a commercial and took the opportunity to present a signed Argentina jersey when the two met. The shirt had the words "For Ali, my eternal friend" written on it when it was handed over at the meeting in Tunis.

Bennaceur in turn handed the former Argentina skipper a framed photo of himself, Maradona and Shilton, who captained England, before the match at the Azteca Stadium.

Maradona's quarter-final goal against England in Mexico City gained added notoriety when the tiny Argentine, who tapped the ball over the head of onrushing goalkeeper Peter Shilton with his fist, claimed it had been scored by the 'Hand of God'.

(Image: Press Association Images)

Tunisian referee Ali Bennaceur failed to spot the handball and allowed the goal to stand amid furious protests from the England players, prompting a debate that still rages on today over the use of referees from smaller nations in major matches.

Posting on his Facebook page Maradona said: "I had an emotional reunion with Ali Bennaceur, I gave him a shirt of the Argentina national team, and he gave me the picture of that game that he has in his house."

The match happened four years after the Falklands War, in which the UK retained the island it had originally taken from Argentina in 1833.

(Image: Diego Maradona Facebook)

Bennaceur always claimed he was let down by his assistants saying: "If you watch the game, you can realize that one of the line judges (the Bulgarian Bogdan Dotchev) was better placed than me.

"Before the game, FIFA gave us clear guidelines: 'If your colleague is better placed than you are, his decision should take precedence'. That's what I did: my assistant did not raise his flag," he told a French football magazine So Foot recently.

And he added: "I had the pleasure of seeing the best goal of the century. When the game ended, I approached and said a thousand times bravo."