On his first visit to India, the football legend Diego Maradona made sure he did not miss the global headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity, the organisation founded by the late Mother Teresa.

On Sunday, Maradona paid homage at the tomb of Mother Teresa as around 20,000 fans lined the dusty roads to catch a glimpse of the superstar.

After lighting a candle, he joined a special mass and even interacted with the sisters and children - many of them orphans who live at the order.

"Maradona talked to the children and kissed their cheeks," Sister Lysa told AFP news agency. "He said it was a great feeling, a dream come true, to come to Mother House and pay tribute to Mother Teresa."

Praising the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Maradona said on Saturday, "I wanted to see what Mother Teresa has done in this city. So I want to utilise this trip to visit Mother House."

After the founding of Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata, Mother Teresa, an Albanian nun with Indian citizenship, ministered to the poor, sick, orphaned and dying for more than 45 years, while guiding the charity's expansion, first throughout India and then in other countries.