7 – Mané Garrincha, football of the future played in 1972, “The joy of the People”!

Estories, Hisroym Facts, Cases, !Causos”

7 – Mané, football of the future played in 1972, “The joy of the People”!

One of the greatest honors and joys that football gave me was to work, still very young, at the age of 21, with the Genius of Football Mané Garrincha, “The Joy of the People” in the final stage of his career, at Olaria Atlético Clube, in Bariri, where I had played in the youth categories, from 67 to 69. It was still in the Faculty of the School of Physical Education of UFRJ, the only one existing at the time, next to the School of Physical Education of the Army, created by Law in 1940. He interned and replaced the Excellent Prof. Arnaldo Belota on Wednesdays and Fridays, and on trips, because he taught and attended the Football Coach Course with classes on those days.

Mané not only cheered the people, but his teammates and everyone around him, had a good spirit, free and led his life having fun, distributing “lizards”, cheering everyone except his markers, the “Joões” who did not even sleep the day before and were devastated on game days.

At that time, already with his 38-39 years, knees genuvalgum (one) and varum (the other) mistreated by so many minutes of work, games, blows and surgeries (and say, injections to play too) trained a lot with Arnaldo Belota’s plan, performed daily before training, in the locker room, with devices and sandbags, was flying again, bird that was, Strong, fast legs, plucked that even though the marker knew it would come out on the right, he couldn’t keep up. Until one day, a player with whom he always used to play, passed him who was in a climbing motion on the bench with one leg, sandbag on his shoulders and gave a nudge at the height of the kidneys that made him unbalance backwards, then forward, then distending the back of the thigh. He returned to training and playing, but no longer yielded the same, stopped playing and went to do a farewell game in Maraca, I think a Fla x Flu.

But the story I want to tell happened on a trip to Campos, on the eve of my 21st birthday, me with my forearm plastered by a fracture in my index finger, writing everything down with my left hand, as published in my humble book, Futebol Arte e Ofício: Viagem a Campos para Amistoso de entrega das Faixa de Cinco campeão ao Americano, on 11 April 1972. Order of arrival for the trip: Pedro Paulo (Goalkeeper), Manduca, Gessê, Mineiro, Mario Tito, Pirulito, Roberto Pinto (player and coach), Nélio, Altivo, Aloisio, Pastinha, Roberto, Mané, Vantuil and Salvador.

In the evening, after bathing and having dinner we went to the Jockey Club of Campos where there was a Tribute to Mané, Pottery and the American, with a Match for each.

On the historic day 12 April, Wednesday, everyone went for a walk in the City, but Mane went out with the President of the American to catch some birds, which he loved and everyone knew, including his nickname is the name of a Bird, Garrincha. Then he went to City Hall for tributes. At 5 p.m. dinner (rice, chips, mixed salad and roasted chicken, and dessert, peach with sour cream). The Lecture of the Coach-Player Roberto Pinto (nephew of Jair da Rosa Pinto), who played a lot of football, knew the ball, and when he stopped he became a Technician like Uncle) was at 7 pm, a learning experience for me, who already worked as a Technician of the Lower Categories (as it was called at the time) in Cocotá, but had not yet taken the Course for Technician, because he was still studying Physical Education.

The “Game” was scheduled for 21:15, stadium “super” “super crowded”, had people inside the fence, surrounding with chairs all around the field. Awesome the audience.

Tributes to us, to the American (Five-time Local Champion), with delivery of the Tracks and to Mané. The game started at 10 p.m.

The team ran a lot, reaching with ease to 2-0 (Mane passes in beautiful plays, goals from Salvador and Pirulito). Mane was impossible, ran a lot, SCORED, FOUGHT, ARMED AND ATTACKED, knotting the legs of the left back, replaced at half-time. In the second half the team slowed down, the American scored his goal and the friendly and festive game ended 2-1.

I saw, with those eyes that the Earth has to eat, one of the greatest individual performances by a player, only comparable to that of Romario against Uruguay at the Maracanã.

Thank you, Mane Garrinha, thank you, Lord!

Mane with the CBD sweater, so was he!

Mane on the right wing, Roberto Pinto with the ball, Mario Tito the tallest next to goalkeeper Pedro Paulo. Timache!

Mane’s legs, Genie’s ball.

P.S. – Manoel Francisco dos Santos (October 28, 1933 – January 20, 1983), better known as Garrincha, was a Brazilian footballer who played as a right winger. Noted for his great skill and his baffling dribbles, Garrincha is considered by many to be the most celebrated right winger and the best dribbler in the history of football. Globally recognized as a legendary figure in the sport, he is extremely popular among football lovers in Brazil, where older fans consider him better even than Pelé.

Childhood: the nickname “Garrincha”

Of humble origin, with fifteen brothers in the family, Manoel dos Santos was a native of Pau Grande, a neighborhood of Magé, in the state of Rio de Janeiro. His sister would have nicknamed him Garrincha, making an association with the bird of the same name, very common in the region.^[15]

Wikipedia

I heard that after trying in several Clubs, he arrived at Botafogo for experience with the kick under his arm. Starters against reserve, there for so many the Coach calls Mané, and puts to play, right winger against the lateral Nilton Santos (“The Encyclopedia”). At the end of the training Nilton Santos turns to the Coach and says: better hire this one, because if you play against us I can not score!