le jour où le « Roi » a joué contre les Girondins de Bordeaux, au parc Lescure
Huge popular success for this landmark Bordeaux-Santos. The Girondins, taken by the throat, fought back: true to his legend, Pelé ignited the match.
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Under a delicious spring sun, the match seemed to fall into a sweet languor. Pelé’s Santos came to score his second but by the “king” himself and this little tactical and technical masterpiece clearly sounded the glass of the Girondins, at the same time as it killed the show.
At least that was our feeling after half time and a minute of play. And the thousands of spectators, whose enthusiasm was gradually dying out, also seemed to share it. How two goals come together at Santos, one of…
Huge popular success for this landmark Bordeaux-Santos. The Girondins, taken by the throat, fought back: true to his legend, Pelé ignited the match.
> Find all our archives on Pelé in our search engine
Under a delicious spring sun, the match seemed to fall into a sweet languor. Pelé’s Santos came to score his second but by the “king” himself and this little tactical and technical masterpiece clearly sounded the glass of the Girondins, at the same time as it killed the show.
At least that was our feeling after half time and a minute of play. And the thousands of spectators, whose enthusiasm was gradually dying out, also seemed to share it. How can two goals come together for Santos, one of the best teams in the world? How to deceive Claudio’s vigilance or control this devil of number 11 Edu who made Gérard Papin see all the colors on the left wing?
We were there in our thoughts, convinced of a comfortable success for Santos, when Luttuada, who yesterday rivaled his opponents in technique and elegance, infiltrated the tight mesh of the Brazilian defensive system: a feint of running on the left, a right hook, ball at the foot, Lattuada had just “grilled” three defenders and appeared alone in front of goalkeeper Claudio! When arming his shot which seemed to have hit the target, the Uruguayan international was shot down by Hermes, in the middle of the penalty area, and under the bronca that you can imagine.
The football party was reaching its apotheosis
The public finally came out of its neutrality and demanded reparation. The referee sanctions the fault in the appropriate way. Penalty that Didier Couécou transformed with a masterful counterpoint. The game was on. Couécou had just given him what he lacked the most: a depth of suspense without which, even if a football match were played by the most illustrious servants, it would remain a colorless and passionless spectacle.
Bordeaux! Bordeaux!
On the understood from the outset. No sooner had the penal been converted into corn than from 30,000 chests sprang vibrant Bordeaux! Bordeaux! The perfectly successful football festival was reaching its apotheosis.
As if driven by an irresistible second wind, the Bordelais came out of their role as foils and threw themselves headlong into what had become a real game. We no longer played on tiptoe. There was no longer any question of precedence. We attacked Pelé like any other footballer. The public, also caught up in the game, shouted louder and louder Bordeaux! Bordeaux! and Santos was caught on the scoreboard thanks to a bright goal from the young Goubet, who made wonderful use of an excellent aerial cross from Tokoto: a nice vertical release, a header and the ball which went into the top corner of the Brazilian goal , in an overflow of indescribable enthusiasm…
Pelé drives the ball
We say more about Santos to designate the biggest football club in South America, but the Santos de Pelé. Nothing is fairer. Nothing is more true. At 33, King Pelé has lost none of his fascinating appeal, his prodigious technique and his keen sense of collective play. Coldoaldo, whom we did not see long enough. He was replaced by Pitica in the 35th minute, Carlos Alberto, Jair, Léo, Alsindo, Edu, what a number 11! are all famous players. But Pelé is something else again. He is the great among the greats. The special one.
4 million francs for 94 minutes
It is nice to know that this player received 4,000,000 francs yesterday to play this match. Knowing that this makes nearly 50,000 old francs per minute of football, we remain confused with admiration. What does it matter if the stamps of Belmondo, whose annoying absence made innumerable midinettes stamped with impatience are derisory, even to those of Pelé. millions for 94 minutes! What does this excess matter, it too may be unique in the world, the important thing is that at 33, this exceptional player has remained more or less what he was in 1958 in Sweden .
The part he took in this match was so decisive that it made the result, also on its own.
The match had just started when Pelé had already revealed himself. And how ! Solicited by Leo 25 meters from Rigoni’s goals, he did not hesitate. Crisp control with the left foot, and a dazzling shot whose trajectory shaves and taut like the string of a bow, found Rigoni parrying at the foot of his post.
The action had been so sudden, so unforeseen that the Bordeaux goalkeeper could only push the ball back… into the feet of Alsindo, Santos’ n°9 who opened the scoring.
The second but really signed Pelé was even more beautiful and infinitely more difficult to achieve. This happened at the very start of the second half, an astonishing exchange of passes in the heart of the Bordeaux defense, however vigilant, as you can imagine, allowed the Léo-Pelé tandem to open their way to the goal without the ball does not touch the ground without being intercepted. Great art!
The necessary response
Pelé’s Santos was also this game sometimes calm, sometimes burning but always shimmering. It was this attack made of a good center before Alsindo and real wingers. No false wingers as we say at home with all that is restrictive, even negative. Admittedly, Jair no longer seems the overflow wing that suits the good days of Milan. But at least he is still available on his right wing. Edu, at the height of his glory, is an authentic number 11, whose role is essentially to outflank the opposing defense. From this point of view, too, we have learned a great lesson.
You don’t meet Pelé every day
It remains that the Girondins offered their designated adversaries the reply which was appropriate, which was essential. At first – you don’t meet Pelé every day – there was a certain caution in their behavior. Luttuada and Tokoto, however, quickly set the tone and, without the slightest complex, the Girondins set off in pursuit of the equalizer, Gérard and Papin, increasingly wingers, multiplied the raids on the right flank of the Santos defense , but in vain. Didier Couécou, obviously a little lost and too nervous, could not dictate his law to the Brazilian defenders.
Pelé had set the game ablaze with his whole class
Then there was the wonderful second goal from Pelé, scored as soon as the second half resumed (45th) and the proud revolt of the Girondins. Pelé had ignited the match of all his class. He will probably have put his team away from the return of the opponent. It was without counting on the courage and the determination of the men of Phélippon who mired in the meeting an unexpected end point. Lattuada, who felt a little at home in this match, Tokoto, Papin, and, to a lesser degree, Gallice, succeeded the most prominent Bordelais. But we will be grateful to the Gironde team, as a whole, to the young Bergeroo who replaced, and very well, Rigoni, in the second half, to Goubet who replaced Wojciak, for not having accepted the superiority of Pelé and of his comrades. Admittedly, it was a friendly match, the result of which did not matter. It remains that the revolt of the Girondins gave this Santos – Bordeaux the dimension essential to the total success of this great celebration of football which filled us.