Diego Maradona: 'Hand of God' delivered Argentine pope

In my country the ‘hand of God’ has now brought about an Argentine pope,” says El Diego.

Mar 14th 2013, 2:49 PM 7,981 29

ARGENTINE FOOTBALL LEGEND Diego Maradona says the fabled “hand of God” was at work once more in delivering the papacy to his country.

“What joy,” Maradona wrote to Italian daily Il Messaggero. “In my country the ‘hand of God’ has now brought about an Argentine pope.”

Maradona, whose handball goal helped Argentina to beat England and pave the way to World Cup glory in 1986, described himself as a “fervent Catholic”.

“Having a pope from our country is a great honour for all of Argentina,” he wrote in the letter published today.

Buenos Aires Archbishop Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the first Latin American pontiff, defied expert predictions with his election last night, becoming Pope Francis.