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How it feels to score in a final – by Pele, Tardelli and more
Pele scored twice, aged 17. He remains the youngest scorer in World Cup final history
My father was a footballer, but he injured his knee, which ended his career. For the 1950 World Cup final, when Brazil played Uruguay at the Maracana, he and his friends were preparing all this food for a big party because they were expecting to become champions. Brazil lost.
My dad was crying, everyone was crying. I was only 10 so I couldn’t understand. I said, “Dad, why are you crying?” and he said, “Because Brazil lost the World Cup”. To try to make him feel better, I said, “No, don’t cry, I’m going to win the cup for you.”
After the disappointments of 1950 and 1954, the Brazilian people really did not have much confidence in the Brazilian team. But Brazil has never had another team like the one in ’58. Still today, I do not think there has been one better.
For the first time ever, the team had a psychologist – a man called Dr Cavalho. He said, because I was only 17, I was too young to cope with the pressures. He also said Garrincha was too irresponsible and he should not go either. What did he know!
I think there was more pressure on the older players. The morning of the final, they were talking to all the journalists while I was playing dice with the children of the people who owned the hotel we were staying in. I remember they were all very blond, which was novel.
It was a bit of a shock when they took the lead, but Vava scored our first and then I scored the “sombrero”. I took it on my chest, I played it over the top of the defender and I struck it as it came down. The ball came to my side, I stopped it, put it over the opponent and I scored the goal.
The last goal was a header where I jumped over my marker. I had a good take-off. The goalkeeper was following the action, which was with Zagallo. I ran into the area and I headed it in.
At the end, even the Swedish fans were applauding Brazil. I started crying. Gilmar, who was the Santos goalkeeper, came over and hugged me and he said, “Stop crying, stop crying, boy!” But it was a very strong emotion that you cannot explain.
‘Our psychologist said I was too young to play’