Garrincha
Manuel Francisco dos Santos arrived in Pau Grande, a district of Magé, on the 28th of October 1933. His right leg measured six centimetres shorter than his left, while his left leg turned outward and his right leg turned inward. A doctor certified him as crippled during his childhood years. He grew up smaller than other children, with his sister Rosa noticing he resembled a little bird she called Garrincha. This name stuck by the age of four, becoming how family and friends knew him. His father drank cachaça heavily, a problem Manuel would inherit later in life. The boy had a carefree attitude despite his physical challenges. Scouts noticed his talent but did not bring him to professional football until his late teens. He showed no interest in a career despite immense natural ability.
Garrincha signed for Botafogo in 1953 while already married and a parent. Team officials were ecstatic to learn he was over eighteen and able to be treated as a professional. During his first training session, he dribbled the ball through the legs of Nílton Santos. Santos was a Brazilian international defender who held sixteen caps. He asked that Botafogo sign the young player immediately. Garrincha played in a five-zero win for Botafogo's reserves before scoring a hat trick on his first-team debut against Bonsucesso on the 19th of July 1953. He helped Botafogo win the Campeonato Carioca in 1957 by scoring twenty goals in twenty-six games. He finished second in the league scoring charts that year. After twelve years at the club, he scored two hundred thirty-two goals in five hundred eighty-one matches. The home team room at Maracanã Stadium is known as Garrincha today. He became a symbol of the history of the club.
Ten days before the 1958 World Cup finals started, Garrincha scored one of his most famous goals against Fiorentina in Italy. He beat four defenders and the goalkeeper before stopping on the goal line. Rather than kicking the ball into an open net, he dribbled past Enzo Robotti to score anyway. His coaches were upset at what they considered an irresponsible move. This likely led to him not being picked for Brazil's first two matches of the tournament. He did start their third match against the USSR on the 29th of May. That match marked the debut of both Garrincha and Pelé. The Soviets were favourites for the tournament, but Brazilians attacked directly from kickoff. Garrincha received the ball on the right wing and beat three opposing players. He took a shot which hit the post. Less than a minute later, he set up a chance for Pelé who hit the crossbar. Brazil won the match two-zero. Their manager Vicente Feola decided to attack directly from the kickoff. The game's start is often referred to as the best three minutes of football of all time. Brazil never lost a match while fielding both Garrincha and Pelé.
Garrincha was the most outstanding player of the 1962 FIFA World Cup when Pelé suffered an injury after the second match. He played a leading role in Brazil's triumph, excelling particularly against England and Chile. He scored four goals in those two matches alone. During the quarter-final against England, he opened the score with a header off a corner kick. Vavá scored Brazil's second goal off a rebound of a shot by Garrincha. Minutes later, Garrincha sent a curved shot known as the banana shot into the bottom of the net. The British football press said he was Stanley Matthews, Tom Finney and a snake charmer all rolled into one. He scored two more goals in the semi-final against hosts Chile. A headline in the Chilean newspaper El Mercurio read What planet is Garrincha from? He was sent off in that match after eighty-three minutes for retaliating after being continually fouled. He was not suspended for the following match. Brazil faced Czechoslovakia in the final despite suffering from a severe fever. They won three-one and he got voted player of the tournament. It was the second consecutive World Cup won by Garrincha and Brazil. He became the first player to win the Golden Ball, Golden Boot and the World Cup in the same tournament.
Garrincha put on weight after the 1958 World Cup partly because of his drinking. He was dropped from the national team for a friendly match in Rio against England on the 13th of May 1959. Later that month, he went on tour with Botafogo in Sweden and got a local girl pregnant. When he returned to Brazil, he drove home to Pau Grande and ran over his father Amaro. He drove off without stopping while an angry mob chased him. They found him drunk, almost catatonic, and with no grasp of what he had done. His father died of liver cancer on the 10th of October having been dependent on alcohol for years. In August 1962, his wife Nair gave birth to their fifth child while his mistress Iraci announced her first pregnancy. A crash into a lorry in April 1969 killed his mother-in-law. He married samba singer Elza Soares in an unofficial ceremony in March 1966. The couple separated in 1977 when she left him after he struck her during an argument. He is known to have fathered at least fourteen children. After a series of financial and marital problems, Garrincha died of cirrhosis of the liver on the 20th of January 1983.
His funeral procession from Maracanã to Pau Grande drew millions of fans, friends and former players to pay their respects. People painted on the wall Obrigado, Garrincha, por você ter lived. An epitaph reads Here rests in peace the one who was the Joy of the People Mané Garrincha. A multi-use stadium in Brasília called Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha is named after him. His career was presented in the 1962 film Garrincha Alegria do Povo. Another movie called Garrincha Estrela Solitária based on Ruy Castro's book depicted his life on and off the field in 2003. He came seventh in the FIFA Player of the Century grand jury vote in 1999. He was voted into the World Team of the 20th Century by two hundred fifty of the world's most respected football writers and journalists. He was named in the FIFA World Cup All-Time Team. Football writer Scott Murray remarked when writing for The Guardian in 2010 that Garrincha was the greatest dribbler ever. Djalma Santos stated he had a childish spirit and was football's answer to Charlie Chaplin.
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Common questions
When was Manuel Francisco dos Santos born and where did he arrive?
Manuel Francisco dos Santos arrived in Pau Grande, a district of Magé, on the 28th of October 1933. His physical condition included a right leg that measured six centimetres shorter than his left.
What happened during Garrincha's first-team debut for Botafogo on the 19th of July 1953?
Garrincha scored a hat trick on his first-team debut against Bonsucesso on the 19th of July 1953. He had previously played in a five-zero win for Botafogo's reserves before this match.
How many goals did Garrincha score during the 1962 FIFA World Cup final matches against England and Chile?
Garrincha scored four goals in the matches against England and Chile alone during the 1962 FIFA World Cup. He opened the quarter-final score with a header off a corner kick and sent two more curved shots into the net against hosts Chile.
On what date did Garrincha die and what was the cause of death?
Garrincha died of cirrhosis of the liver on the 20th of January 1983. This occurred after a series of financial and marital problems following his drinking habits.
Which stadium is named after Garrincha and when was it established as such?
A multi-use stadium in Brasília called Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha is named after him. The home team room at Maracanã Stadium is also known as Garrincha today.