Eng v Arg

25 years since the Hand of God

With England and Argentina, fresh from conflict in the Falklands, battling for a place in the semi-finals of the 1986 World Cup, the world’s best player changed the game and exacted his own brand of revenge on England. The “Hand of God” has been the most famous phrase in sporting history ever since.

If only John Barnes had come on earlier…

"The goal was scored a little by the hand of god, a little by the head of Maradona."
Maradona

"Even if there was a hand, it was the hand of God."
Maradona

"I was waiting for my teammates to embrace me and no one came... I told them, 'Come hug me or the referee isn't going to allow it.'"
Maradona

“At the time I called it the Hand of God. Bollocks was is it the hand of God, it was the hand of Diego and it felt like pickpocketing the English.”
Maradona

ARGENTINA
GK 18 Nery Pumpido
DF 5 Jose Luis Brown
DF 9 Jose Cuciuffo
DF 19 Oscar Ruggeri
MF 2 Sergio Batista  60'
MF 7 Jorge Burruchaga  75'
MF 10 Diego Maradona (c)
MF 12 Hector Enrique MF 14 Ricardo Giusti
MF 16 Julio Olarticoechea
FW 11 Jorge Valdano
Substitutions:
MF 21 Carlos Tapia  75'
Manager: Carlos Bilardo

ENGLAND
GK 1 Peter Shilton (c)
DF 2 Gary Stevens
DF 3 Kenny Sansom
DF 14 Terry Fenwick  9'
DF 6 Terry Butcher
MF 4 Glenn Hoddle
MF 16 Peter Reid  64'
MF 17 Trevor Steven  74'
MF 18 Stephen Hodge
FW 10 Gary Lineker
FW 20 Peter Beardsley
Substitutions:
FW 11 Chris Waddle  64'
FW 19 John Barnes  74'
Manager: Bobby Robson