“Legends Never Die” , Pele is not dead , his deeds will keep him immortal.In the eyes of many, he is the best footballer of all time. The only footballer to win the World Cup three times. The world has lost him. But Pele remains arguably the greatest footballer of all time.
He was born in a poverty-stricken slum in Sao Paulo. He used to make balls by wrapping socks or playing football with grapefruits on the streets of Sao Paulo ,As his family could not even afford to buy a football . Not only did he play, but he also created magical moments at that young age. At the age of 15, this boy scored goal after goal in Santos’ Main team.
At the age of 16, he played in the Brazilian national football team. And at the age of 17, Pele made Brazil the World Cup winner by scoring 6 goals in 4 matches in 1958 & he became the youngest player to win the World Cup! But that’s just the beginning for Pele.
He is the only footballer to win the World Cup three times & the only footballer to score 1000 goals .
Questioned Pele’s superiority ! Even in Brazil, Pele’s superiority is compared. It was the Brazilians themselves who set up Garrincha as Pele’s rival. Garrincha is loved by Brazilians for the similarities between his life and the Brazilian way of life. For his work with the ball. This love is heartfelt. And the love for Pele comes from the brain. There is no denying Pele’s record, the monstrous statistics. Interestingly, when these two lovers of Brazilian hearts and minds played together, Brazil never lost.
But if it can be accepted that Maradona lost out to Pele in the all-time greats debate, then the all-time greats debate can be scrapped. Passion and drama at the heart of Maradona’s genius, brilliance and controversy. But Brazil’s black perfectly cut diamonds, razor sharp and diamond are timeless. The pinnacle of football wisdom. Unique in his sense of moderation, never wasted talent. There was always a goal. Just as he always was in front of the opponent’s goal post.
Pele was injured before the 1958 World Cup. It was his teammates who pushed Pele to the World Cup in Sweden. Pele scored 6 goals in that World Cup. Scored a pair of goals in the final. A 17-year-old Pele fainted after the match. After regaining consciousness, player of the opposing team (Sweden) Sigvard Perling said to Pele, ‘I wanted to applaud after seeing your second goal.’
In the 1962 World Cup, Pele could not play more than two matches due to injury. Brazil won the world cup with Garrincha service . In the next World Cup too, Pella was a victim of a tough tackle and left the first round. Brazil also departed with him. Because of this injury, Pele was not supposed to play in the 1970 World Cup. But in this World Cup, the ‘goal of the century’ pass was from his feet. It was the signature pass of the ‘Best Footballer of the Century’. Brazil won that final 4-1 against Italy. In this match, the responsibility of marking Pele was on Italian defender Tarchisio Berzinich. He said, ‘I told myself before the final, he (Pele) is a human being like us. I thought wrong.’
Before the 1970 World Cup, a Brazilian sportswriter asked Joao Saldana, who was fired as coach of the Brazilian national team for political reasons, ‘Who is Brazil’s best goalkeeper?” Saladana said, ‘Pele.” After mentioning Pele’s name in roughly half of the team’s positions, Saladana laughed and said, ‘Pele is the best footballer in the world in any position.” Many who played with and against Pele echoed Saldana.
Pele won a total of 40 trophies for Santos, Brazil and the New York Cosmos. He and Franz Beckenbauer founded football in the United States.
It is not only for scoring 1282 goals in 1366 matches, but also for dazzling everyone with his brilliance. Rather, Pele’s genuine love for the game and bringing it to the doorsteps of the people of the world is unparalleled. What else can one expect from an immortal legend in a game?
In the country where football is a religion, everyone is mourning for him today.
