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From Neymar to Gary Lineker and others, tributes continue to pour in as the world mourns the passing away of football's greatest legends, Pelé.
Brazil legend Edson Arantes do Nascimento, popularly known as Pele, has passed away at the age of 82.
His death was announced on Thursday evening, December 29, 2022, having suffered from a series of health issues in recent years, most recently after being diagnosed with cancer in September 2021.
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Pele, who played as a forward and later an attacking midfielder spent majority f his club career with Brazilian club giants Santos, for whom he scored 643 goals in 659 official games between 1956 and 1974.
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He later finished his career with three years at New York Cosmos in the United States, where he scored 66 goals in 107 games.
However, Pele made his mark in football with the Brazil national team, for which he scored 77 goals in 92 appearances and won the FIFA World Cup an unprecedented three times.
Prolific is an understatement for the legend who continued to bring smiles to million sof football fans and lovers of the beautiful game around the world
Pele: Hero of Brazil
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Pele shot to prominence as a 17-year-old in the 1958 World Cup, going on to become the youngest player to score in a final when netting twice in the 5-2 triumph over Sweden.
He started the next tournament in Chile four years later, but was injured shortly after scoring in Brazil's opening game but didn’t feature in the squad that beat Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the final.
Pele’s reputation continued to spread across the planet, reaching incredible individual milestones including having scored the most hat-tricks (92), the most goals in a calendar year (127 in 1959, as recognised by FIFA), and providing the most assists in World Cup history (10).
In 2000, he was named the joint FIFA Player of the Century alongside Argentina legend Diego Maradona.
When news of his critical health emerged during the Qatar World Cup, Brazil’s players paid their own tribute, walking onto the pitch with a banner featuring their joint highest goalscorer of all time.
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In their own tribute on Wednesday, December 28, 2022, Pele’s family said: “On his journey, he enchanted the world with his genius in sport, stopped a war, carried out social works all over the world and spread what he most believed to be the cure for all our problems: love.
“His message today becomes a legacy for future generations.” as per DailyMail.
Social Media Reactions
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Following the news of his demise, fans of the Brazil icon have taken to social media to pen heartfelt tributes to football’s immortal one.
Brazil and PSG forward Neymar has led tributes on social media having recently matched his goalscoring record (77) for the Selecao at the just concluded World Cup in Qatar.
Neymar wrote: “Before Pele, ’10’ was just a number.
“I read that phrase somewhere, at some point in my life.
“But that sentence, beautiful, is incomplete. I would say that before Pele, football was just a sport. Pele changed everything.
“He turned football into art, into entertainment. He gave a voice to the poor, to black people and especially gave visibility to Brazil. Football and Brazil have raised their status thanks to the king! He is gone, but his magic will remain. Pele is eternal.”
Meanwhile Neymar’s PSG teammate and France superstar Kylian Mbappe wrote: “The king of football has left us but his legacy will never be forgotten,”
English football icon Gary Linker described him as “the most divine of footballers and joyous of men.”.
While former US President, Barrack Obama wrote: "Pelé was one of the greatest to ever play the beautiful game. And as one of the most recognizable athletes in the world, he understood the power of sports to bring people together. Our thoughts are with his family and everyone who loved and admired him."
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