Tributes have been paid to football icon Diego Maradona after it was confirmed he had died aged 60. 

The Argentina World Cup winner and the national team’s former manager had been in hospital in Buenos Aires after surgery to remove a blood clot on the brain earlier this month.

READ MORE: Diego Maradona dead: Icon behind 'Hand of God' goal dies aged 60

The AFA said on Twitter: “The Argentine Football Association, through its President Claudio Tapia, expresses its deepest sorrow for the death of our legend, Diego Armando Maradona. You will always be in our hearts.”

Maradona is widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time and was the inspiration for Argentina’s World Cup success in Mexico in 1986. He also led the country to the final of the 1990 tournament in Italy and managed them in South Africa in 2010.

Tributes came pouring in after the news of his death.

Pele, who alongside Maradona often tops polls for the accolade of greatest footballer of all time, wrote on his official Twitter account: “What sad news. I lost a great friend and the world lost a legend.

“There is still much to be said, but for now, may God give strength to family members. One day, I hope we can play ball together in the sky.”

Gary Lineker, who played in the England side in that quarter-final defeat, 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”

Boca Juniors, where Maradona made his name before securing a then world-record transfer to Barcelona, tweeted: “Eternal thanks. Eternal Diego.”

Former Spain goalkeeper and fellow World Cup winner Iker Casillas tweeted: that it was a “sad day for football”, describing Maradona as a “genius of this sport”.

Football clubs around the world paid tribute to Maradona.

Manchester City posted a photo of him embracing Sergio Aguero, adding: “We’re joining the footballing world in saying farewell to one of the absolute greats.”

And Liverpool tweeted: “A true great of the game. Rest in peace, Diego Maradona.”

Real Madrid – the rivals of one of Maradona’s former clubs, Barcelona – paid tribute to “one of the greatest players in all history”.

“Diego Armando Maradona leaves an immense legacy, which has become a myth for millions of fans around the world,” the club said in a statement.

Graeme Souness, who played against Maradona during his time in Italy with Sampdoria, told Sky Sports News: “An absolute genius on the pitch, but troubled off it. He has an argument for being the greatest player ever, I personally think it is another Argentinian (Lionel Messi) but that is only down to longevity.

“He is one of the greatest players to ever kick a ball and you were in the presence of greatness when you played against him. Some of the things he could do with the ball, you were blessed to share a pitch with him, and I think anyone who played against him would say that.

“He was tiny but he was fearless. There were players around at that time who were known to be over physical but he was an absolute warrior and ridiculously brave. He’d get kicked but he would come back for more. There have only been a handful of players in history who have been blessed with his ability. He was unique.”