Eusébio

Lore & Background

Eusébio was born in the Mafalala neighbourhood of Lourenço Marques (now Maputo), Portuguese Mozambique on 25 January 1942. His parents were Laurindo António da Silva Ferreira, a white railroad worker from Malanje, Portuguese Angola, and his wife Elisa Anissabeni, a black Mozambican woman. He was the fourth child of five. His father died from tetanus when Eusébio was eight years old.

He began playing football with friends using stuffed socks as balls. He first played for a local amateur team called Os Brasileiros. At age 12, he joined Sporting Clube de Lourenço Marques. At 15, a former Juventus goalkeeper turned scout spotted him, but his mother refused Juventus' offer.

He played for Sporting Lourenço Marques from 1957 to 1960, scoring 77 goals in 42 appearances for the main team. On 15 December 1960, he arrived in Lisbon, joining Benfica in May 1961 after a disputed transfer. He helped Portugal reach third place at the 1966 FIFA World Cup, being the top goalscorer with nine goals. He won the Ballon d'Or in 1965 and was runner-up in 1962 and 1966.

He is Benfica's all-time top scorer with 473 goals in 440 competitive matches. His honours include eleven Primeira Liga titles and a European Cup, also reaching additional European Cup finals in 1963, 1965 and 1968. He was the European Cup top scorer in 1964–65, 1965–66 and 1967–68. He won the Bola de Prata a record seven times.

He was the first ever player to win the European Golden Boot, in 1968, a feat he replicated in 1973. From his retirement until his death, he was an ambassador of football. Pelé named him in the 2004 FIFA 100 list. In November 2003, he was selected as the Golden Player of Portugal by the Portuguese Football Federation.

Reader's Guide

Eusébio played as a striker. He was known for his speed, technique, athleticism and right-footed shot. He accumulated 733 goals in 745 matches. In the UEFA Champions League, he ranks second for the all-time Portuguese top goalscorers, scoring 47 goals. He is the second-highest goalscorer, behind Alfredo Di Stéfano, in the pre-Champions League era of the European Cup with 47 goals.

Did You Know?

• He was elected the ninth-best footballer of the 20th century by the IFFHS.
• Shortly after Eusébio's death, Alfredo Di Stéfano stated: 'For me Eusébio will always be the best player of all time.'