One of the remarkable facets of Pele’s universal appeal was that he became a household name in an era when there was no internet and the penetration of television was limited. Yet, there was barely any place on the planet where the Brazilian legend, who died on Thursday aged 82, wasn’t known.
Nothing illustrated this better than the euphoria he generated in the laidback city of Kolkata (then Calcutta) when he first set foot there in 1977. The only player in the world to win three World Cups, Pele — representing the New York Cosmos — arrived in the city to play a friendly game against a star-studded Mohun Bagan team, coached by P K Banerjee.
Mohun Bagan, with the likes of captain Subrata Bhattacharya, Subhas Bhowmick, Shyam Thapa and Surajit Sengupta took the lead twice, in the 18th and 33rd minutes, only for Cosmos to equalize on both occasions. The match ultimately ended 2-2 but the story of the game was Pele, who played what turned out to be his penultimate match.
80,000-odd spectators filled the Eden Gardens to see the legendary Brazilian, who they had only seen on television and glossy foreign magazines, in the flesh. Many more lined up on the city’s streets.
“Lakhs of people gathered outside the Dum Dum Airport to greet the Brazilian legend. There were also teeming crowds outside his hotel in central Kolkata, waiting to catch a glimpse of the only man who had won three World Cups for his team,” late football historian Novy Kapadia wrote in his book, Barefoot to Boots.
Kapadia went on to recall how Pele was apprehensive to play after bouts of rain had made the ground slushy and unsafe to play. He, however, relented after the officials and police personnel told him that the crowd would get violent if he did not play.
“When the match day came, the ground was rain-soaked and slushy. Pele almost refused to play because of the slippery conditions. However, Dhiren Dey and the Bagan officials begged him to play, even at half-pace. Police officials implored Pele, saying the crowd would get violent and lynch the Bagan officials if he did not play. The great Brazilian finally relented, but was cautious throughout the match,” Kapadia recounted in the book.
After the match, Pele would personally go to Bagan player Mohammed Habib for his role in the home team’s two goals.
Pele returned to Kolkata in 2015. Thirty-eight years had passed but the City of Joy had welcomed him back with open arms with the same frenzy.
At Netaji Indoor Stadium, he was asked when and if there could be another Pele. “When I went to Holland, they said (Johan) Cruyff was the new Pele. In England, they said it was George Best. In Argentina, they said (Diego) Maradona was the new Pele. And in Germany, they said it was (Franz) Beckenbauer. But listen, I’m sorry. You can never have another Pele. My father and mother stopped the machine,” the football legend had said back then to rapturous cheers.
When he was asked about a dubious penalty through which his New York Cosmos drew 2-2 against Mohun Bagan in 1977, the legend had said, “Everybody makes a mistake in life. Maybe they (the referee) made a mistake but I don’t remember that. But it was a mistake that Kolkata cherished”.
sayak.datta@expressindia.com
