It was not Pele but Edson Arantes do Nascimento, named after the American scientist Thomas Alva Edison by the football legend’s father Dondiho, who died on Thursday.
Pele still lives and will live forever in the hearts and minds of billions of soccer fans around the world, including the Middle East.
Incidentally, Pele idolized Edison and wanted to be like the American scientist.
He once told Alex Bellos, the co-author of his autobiography, ‘Pele’: “Edson is the person who has the feelings, who has the family, who works hard, and Pele is the idol. Pele doesn’t die. Pele will never die. Pele is going to go on forever. But Edson is a normal person who is going to die one day.”
The Brazilian football legend toured the Middle East and North Africa on many occasions, including a tour of the Gulf in 1973.
People across the region still fondly relish the memories of the times when ‘the King’ visited their places.
Santos tours the Middle East
Pele, like the current fellow country or regional soccer biggies, never played for any European clubs. He spent the vast majority of his career at Santos in Brazil.
‘The King’s Santos team beat local side Al-Ahli 3-0 at the 2,000 capacity Doha Stadium in February 1973.
The setting was a far cry from the extravagant venues in and around the Qatari capital which have just hosted the World Cup.
A week later, the Santos side, which featured fellow World Cup winners Carlos Alberto, Djalma Santos and Clodoaldo, visited the UAE.
They beat Al-Nasr 4-1 in Dubai, the first of many visits by Pele to the Emirates.
But the legend’s Middle East connections started much earlier, when he, along with his team, made a comprehensive tour of Africa in 1967, which included Algeria.
He visited the North African country again in 2014, where he observed rising young Algerian stars and predicted that the national team would cause a surprise at the World Cup later that year. Incidentally, the Algerian team progressed to the first knock-out stage, where they lost to eventual winners Germany.
In 1973, the Brazilian icon and his Santos team visited Egypt, where they played a friendly match against Al-Ahly at Cairo International Stadium.
Pele reportedly told reporters at Cairo airport then that he would score two goals, which is exactly what he did during a comfortable 5-0 win.
His Sudan trip featured a match against Al-Hilal in the city of Omurdman, while the visit to the Gulf took the Brazilian to Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE.
Pele’s applause for Saudi women team and Morocco
Earlier this year, he congratulated Saudi Arabia’s women’s team for their first ever international victory, and just days ago, he applauded Morocco after they became the first African team to make it to a World Cup semi-final.
“I couldn’t fail to congratulate Morocco for the incredible campaign. It’s great to see Africa shine,” he wrote on Instagram.
Pele – the legend
Pele was one of the most prolific goal scorers of world football, winning an unequaled 3 World Cups with Brazil.
His 1279 goals in 1363 games is even recognised in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Here are some instances when he mesmerized the fans on the football pitch:
- 1957- Scored first goal for Brazil against Argentina at age of 16
- 1958- Youngest player to score a hattrick in the World Cup
- 1958- Scoring twice in a World Cup final
- 1970- Scoring Brazil’s 100th goal vs Italy in final and an image which will live forever
The 1970 World Cup final can be defined by just an image, a picture of Pele jumping into the arms of Jairzinho while celebrating the opening goal, a thumping header, which was incidentally Brazil’s 100th.
He would then assist Brazil’s 2nd and 3rd goal before the whole team contributed for the fourth, leading Pele to his record extending 3rd World Cup, something that is yet to be emulated.
His end, at the age of 82, came Thursday at the Albert Einstein Hospital in his hometown in Brazil’s Sao Paulo, where he had been admitted since November 29 with complications related to colon cancer that was diagnosed in September 2021.
Days before his death, he was pictured alongside his children and grandchildren, his face looking tired and worn out, the passing of time having taken its toll on his physique and manner.
But when he smiled that indelible bright-eyed smile of his, there was still a glow, an ageless, immortal glow that perhaps even death cannot stub out.
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