Great things were expected from Pele in the 1966 World Cup in England.
The Brazilians came to these shores as the hot favourites to win their third world title in a row.
However, early on in the group stages, the hatchet men of Bulgaria soon put paid to any aspirations the South Americans had of treble success.
Pele, after scoring early on in the game, was literally kicked out of the tournament by the Bulgarians after being given no protection by the referee.
So, a new king of this particular World Cup would be crowned . . . but who would that be?
Then came the North Korea v Portugal group game.
The North Koreans, considered rank outsiders at the start of the tournament, stunned the much-fancied Portuguese by racing into a 3-0 lead by the 22nd minute.
Benfica player Eusebio then took the game by the scruff of the neck and netted four times as the European side rescued their campaign with a 5-3 victory.
That put the Mozambique-born player firmly in the spotlight and the next few years saw him come very close to wresting away Pele’s lofty status as No 1 footballer in the world.
He didn’t quite manage it, though, and, four years on, Mexico ’70 confirmed Pele’s position in the ‘Beautiful Game’.
Eusebio de Silva Ferreira, to give him his full name, who, according to one website statistician, scored an incredible 733 goals in 745 professional matches, stayed very close to the Benfica club for the rest of his life. His death earlier this week was greatly mourned in Portugal and with all good football-minded people around the world.
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