06/01/2024 – 9:24
“Brazil champion has 13 letters”. Hearing this phrase is like remembering Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo. One of the reasons is his attachment to the number 13, which came about with his wife Alcina, a devotee of Saint Anthony (whose date is celebrated on the 13th). The other is the victorious story, spanning more than half a century, dedicated to the Brazilian team – on or off the field.
Simply four of the five world titles of the yellow team had the participation of Velho Lobo: two as an athlete, one as a coach and one as a technical coordinator.
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Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo died at 11:41 pm this Friday (5). The old Lobo, four-time world champion as a player, coach and assistant coach with the Brazilian team, was 92 years old. Barra D'Or Hospital, where the idol had been hospitalized since the end of last year, reported that he could not resist multiple organ failure resulting from the progression of multiple previously existing comorbidities.
The Brazilian Football Confederation also declared a seven-day mourning period in honor of the memory of its eternal champion. In a statement, CBF president Ednaldo Rodrigues lamented the death of the “legend”:
“The CBF and Brazilian football mourn the death of one of its greatest legends, Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo. CBF offers solidarity to his family and fans in this moment of sadness at the departure of this idol of our football.”
The wake will be at the headquarters of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), in Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, starting at 9:30 am this Sunday. The ceremony will be open to the public. The burial will take place at 4pm on the same Sunday at the São João Batista Cemetery.
Trajectory
Zagallo was from Alagoas, from Atalaia, born on August 8, 1931. Before he turned one, he moved with his family to Rio de Janeiro. His talent with the ball at his feet caught attention when he was approved for the América-RJ children's team, in Tijuca, the neighborhood in the north of Rio where he lived. With Mecão, he was Rio Amateur champion in 1949, as a youth player, before moving to Flamengo.
Before shining at Rubro-Negro, where he was three-time Rio champion (1953 to 1955), he was recruited by the Army. In 1950, working as a security guard at Maracanã, he saw up close the Uruguayan Alcides Ghiggia silence the Greatest in the World and postpone the then unprecedented Brazilian world title dream. A story that the then soldier Zagallo would help change years later.
Winning the Oswaldo Cruz Cup (disputed by the Brazilian and Paraguayan teams) in 1958 was the beginning of Zagallo's career with the national team. He wore hopscotch on 36 occasions and scored six goals. One in the World Cup final that year, in the 5-2 victory over hosts Sweden, stamping the first star on the Brazilian chest. And the left winger made clear the tactical importance – defensive and offensive – that earned him the nickname “little ant”.
It was also in 1958 that Zagallo's time at Flamengo came to an end, with the move to Botafogo. It was seven years at Estrela Solitária, alongside Nilton Santos, Didi and Garrincha, with two Rio titles (1961 and 1962) and two Rio-São Paulo Tournaments (1962 and 1964). It was also wearing the black and white shirt that the left winger helped Brazil lift the Jules Rimet Cup for the second time, in 1962, in Chile.
Trainer
Zagallo left the field at the age of 34, starting his career as a coach. In 1966, he took over Botafogo, becoming two-time Rio champion (1967 and 1968) and leading Glorioso to their first Brazilian title, in 1968.
On the eve of the 1970 World Cup, Old Wolf was called to lead Brazil in Mexico. He would have less than a hundred days to work. Still, he decided to change João Saldanha's team. One of the most striking changes was the choice of the five most advanced players. With Gérson, Rivellino, Tostão, Pelé and Jairzinho, all number 10s at their respective clubs, the team won the tri.
After managing Brazil in the 1974 World Cup, Zagallo spent time in different clubs and countries (Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates), until returning to the national team in 1991, as technical coordinator. Alongside Carlos Alberto Parreira, he was part of the committee for the fourth world championship, being chosen to succeed the champion coach.
The new stint at the helm of hopscotch had bitter moments, such as the elimination in the semifinals of the Atlanta Olympics (United States) by Nigeria, but also victories, such as the Confederations Cup and the Copa América, both in 1997. The latter It was special, as it was Brazil's first away from home. After defeating hosts Bolivia in the final, 3-1, at the altitude of La Paz, the Old Wolf fired the famous phrase at his critics: “You're going to have to swallow me!”.
The runner-up in the world championship in France, in 1998, ended Zagallo's second spell in charge of the Brazilian team.
He managed Portuguesa and Flamengo (where he won Carioca and the 2001 Champions Cup) before, after the penta, in 2002, he re-edited the partnership with Parreira, again as technical coordinator. The duo lifted the 2004 Copa América and 2005 Confederations Cups. The bye in the quarter-finals of the 2006 World Cup, in Germany, was also the last work of Velho Lobo, at 75 years old.
There were 135 matches ahead of Brazil, with a 79.7% success rate, being the coach with the most games in charge of the national team. As coordinator, he participated in another 72 games (65.7% success rate). Well, “Zagallo craque” doesn’t have 13 letters for nothing.
*Reporter Juliano Justo, from EBC
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