SOURCE: ADOTEY ALLOTEY
A few months ago, after the just ended World Cup which took place in Qatar, (from 20 November, 2022 to 18 December, 2022) there was an ongoing debate as to who is the ‘GOAT’ (greatest of all time) in reference to football.
Pele, as he was popularly known, was by any stretch of the imagination, the greatest footballer of all time.
Unfortunately, some people of this present era, who never got to see the football icon play in his prime, wonder why there is a big deal about his exploits, achievements and his contribution to football as we know it today. A very good friend of mine, a great football enthusiast, only felt it compelling to compare these three footballers, as the greatest footballer of all time – Diego Maradona of Argentina, Lionel Messi also of Argentina and Christiano Ronaldo of Portugal.
When I asked him about his exclusion of Pele of Brazil, he bluntly told me that he hasn’t seen Pele play enough to make an informed determination. Though I was taken aback, I had to agree with him that during the glorious days of Pele, it was extremely difficult to come by information, let alone live commentary of football as we do today. I told him that those of us who lived in Accra, the capital of Ghana, in the 1960s, were fortunate enough to go to Opera Square where we joined long queues to watch months old (sometimes years old) football matches featuring the great Pele. I even told him about the fact that sometime in 1969, our local team, Accra Hearts of Oak of Ghana, hosted Santos FC of Brazil. Pele featured for Santos and scored in a 2- 2 tie. And so did Amusah Gbadamoshie and Abeka Ankrah of Hearts of Oak respectively. Luckily, these days, it is easy to Google or do a search on Youtube to watch reels of yesteryear. So periodically, I send my good friend clips of some of the wonders Pele performed whilst playing for Santos FC of Brazil, as well as his amazing contributions to the Brazilian National team even as a teenager. My intention is that some of those old clips would update him about the roles Pele played and his true place in the annals of football history.
Pele was born in October 23, 1940 as Edison Arantes do Nascimento, in Tres Coracoes, Brazil. Even at a young age, Pele felt destined to carry his country on his shoulders. He is said to have consoled his father when he said, “I saw my father cry for first time when Brazil were knocked out of the 1950 World Cup by Uruguay. “Do not worry, I will win a World Cup for you.” This was in reference to the 1950 World Cup match between Brazil and Uruguay, spectated by a record 173,850 people, the most highly attended football match. It was also one of the biggest upsets by an underdog – Uruguay.
The match was played at the Maracana stadium at the then Brazilian capital, Rio de Janeiro. As a result of the lose to Uruguay and the subsequent backlash, Brazil changed the colour of their jersey from white shirt with blue collars to the present day yellow shirt with a green trim, blue shorts with white trim and white socks. Another disturbing result from that encounter was that the black Brazilian goalkeeper, Moacir Barbosa do Nascimento, was blamed for the lose. And even thirteen years later “In 1963, Barbosa was presented with the old square wooden goalposts from the Maracana (the stadium) as a present, which he took home and burned.”
Pele was taught to play football by his father, Dondinho, also a footballer. Pele was so poor growing up that he was said to have used tied newspaper in socks as football. He mastered the art of juggling the football with both feet and virtually every other part of his body. The skills he displayed with the football was a sight to behold. When he began to play at a very tender age many people flocked the various stadia he was features at to watch his antics, and they were never disappointed by his refreshing and acrobatic shows. He began his youth football career by the age of 13 years when he played for Bauru. He played in the position of a forward and an attacking midfielder. He quickly rose through the ranks and by age 15 he began to play for Santos FC. He was the youngest player to score for the Brazilian national team at age 17 at the 1958 World Cup. And to date, he’s the only player to have won three different World Cups – 1958, 1962 and 1970.
To quote Wikipedia “he was labeled “the greatest” by FIFA, he was among the most successful and popular sports figures of the 20th century. In 2000, Pele was voted World Player of the Century by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) and was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the Century (alongside Diego Maradona). His 1,279 goals in 1,363 games, which includes friendlies, is recognized as a Guinness World Record.”
While he played for Santos FC, various teams outside Brazil tried to recruit him. However, he was considered a national treasure and was not allowed to play outside his home country. In 1975, after he had retired from active football, Pele was convinced by former US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, a keen lover of football, to come out of retirement to play for the New York Cosmos to help develop soccer in the USA. He was enticed with a whopping and jaw-dropping 6 million dollars at the time, where he played to parked crowds all over America till his eventual and final retirement in 1977.
He was “crowned” the King of Football, and wherever he went, time literally and figuratively stood still. Pele was a towering figure in football and in order that they witness him perform, the story is told about an incredible event that took place during the Nigerian civil war in 1969 where the two warring factions “agreed to a 48-hour ceasefire so they could watch an exhibition game in Lagos”.
Pele first wore the number 10 jersey in the 1958 World Cup. This number has remained iconic till today.
He was the highest paid footballer of his era was a worth some $100,000,000.00 when he passed in 2022.
As far as his legacy, once more it is worth quoting Wikipedia which states that “Among the most successful and popular sports figures of the 20th century, Pele is one of the most lauded players in the history of football and has been ranked the best player ever. Following his emergence at the 1958 World Cup he was nicknamed O Rei(“The King”). Among his contemporaries, Dutch star Johan Cruyff stated, “Pele was the only footballer who surpassed the boundaries of logic.” Brazil’s 1970 World Cup-winning captain Carlos Alberto Torres opined: “His great secret was improvisation. Those things he did were in one moment. He had an extraordinary perception of the game. According to Tostao, his strike partner at the 1970 World Cup: “Pele was the greatest – he was simply flawless. And off the pitch he is always smiling and upbeat. You never see him bad tempered. He loves being Pele.” His Brazilan teammate Clodoaldo commented on the adulation he witnessed: “In some countries they wanted to touch him, in some they wanted to kiss him. In others they even kissed the ground he walked on. I thought it was beautiful, just beautiful. According to Franz Beckenbauer, West Germany’s 1974 World Cup winning captain: “Pele is the greatest player of all time. He reigned for 20 years. There’s no one to compare with him.”
“Former Real Madrid and Hungary star Ferenc Puskas stated: “The greatest player in history was Di Stefano. I refuse to classify Pele as a player. He was above that. Just Fontaine, French striker and leading scorer at the 1958 World Cup said “When I saw Pele play, it made me feel I should hang my boots. England’s 1966 World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore commented: “Pele was the most complete player I’ve ever seen, he had everything. Two good feet. Magic in the air. Quick. Powerful. Could beat people with skill. Could outrun people. Only five feet and eight inches tall, yet he seemed a giant of an athlete on the pitch…”
After retiring, Pele continued to be lauded by players, coaches, journalists and others. Brazilian attacking midfielder Zico, who represented Brazil at the 1978, 1982 and 1986 FIFA World Cup, stated: “This debate about the player of the century is absurd. There’s only one possible answer: Pele. He’s the greatest player of all time, and by some distance I might add”.
Pele passed on 29 December 2022 at the Albert Einstein Israelite Hospital, Sao Paulo, Brazil, a few day after the Qatar World Cup, and for the final time, throngs of people were in Brazil to pay their respects to the man who described football as a “Beautiful Game”.