By Shaun Murphy-
Brazilian soccer stars past and present are facing criticism from fans for skipping Pelé’s funeral and opting to pay their respects on social media.
Some analysts say there must have been a hidden reason why whole squads of the Brazilian team, past and present did not attend the legend’s funeral.
Many of them paid tributes to the great legend on social media, but their physical absence has led to conclusions that there was some common reason why footballing talents of today and the past few decades were conspicuously absent.
The three-time World Cup champion was buried in his hometown on Tuesday after more than 230,000 mourners honoured him by his casket at Vila Belmiro stadium in Santos. Pelé died last Thursday after a battle with cancer.
Fans expected former Santos players like Neymar, Rodrygo and Giovanni to attend his funeral. They were disappointed that retired great players like Zico, Romario, Ronaldo, Kaká and Ronaldinho Gaucho did not show up at the beach city 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of São Paulo to pay their respects.
Ronaldo sent a heartfelt tribute on social media in which he said” the love you showed me was reciprocated in every moment we shared”.
Their social media accounts were flooded with comments by angry and disappointed fans after Pelé’s burial. Given the level of Pele’s greatness and the significance of his accomplishments, Brazilian football stars disappointed fans by being notably absent for the burial of the legend.
However, suggestions have been made to this publication that Brazilian football stars were not happy with Pele when he was alive, despite the fact they paid tributes to the late footballing magician on social media following his death.
The funeral of two-time World Cup winner Mané Garrincha at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro in 1983 was also not well attended by Brazilian footballers, and Pele did not attend either.
Pelé repeatedly said he was too shaken to attend any funeral of family or friends. He was buried in the same cemetery of his father Dondinho, and his brother Jair Arantes do Nascimento. The Brazilian soccer great did not attend their funerals either
Another view given by Steve Oke, is that: ”the present team may not be able to afford to travel for three days while in season”. Their coaches might not have felt they could afford to let them go.
Brazil’s 2002 World Cup winning squad attended the funeral. One of them — former star midfielder Kaká — was criticized because he had complained during an interview in December that Brazilians do not honour their sports heroes as much as foreigners.
In Neymar’s Instagram post mourning Pelé’s death, one fan wrote: “It is easy to say, but you sent your father and did not come.” The Brazil striker later limited comments in that post to people he knows.
Foreign footballers were also absent for Pelé’s funeral and burial.
Neto, who played for Santos’ archrivals Corinthians, appeared early on Tuesday morning at the 24-hour wake and was preceded by a host of dignitaries, including FIFA president Gianni Infantino; Alejandro Domínguez, head of the South American Football Confederation CONMEBOL; and São Paulo governor Tarcísio de Freitas.
Former midfielder Mauro Silva was the only representative of the 1994 team that won the World Cup in the United States. He is currently an executive at the São Paulo state soccer federation.
Some of Pelé’s surviving Brazil teammates from the 1958, 1962 and 1970 World Cup titles were unfit to attend, like 91-year-old Mário Zagallo, and others like Roberto Rivellino were reportedly too upset.
Fans didn’t seem to believe those who said they tried but could not get to Santos on time :“Unfortunately and with a lot of sorrow I could not attend Pelé’s funeral, I was on the other side of the globe and at work. My flights to return to Brazil started only in the early hours of Wednesday, I can only get to Brazil tomorrow,” he said. “Does that change what I feel for Pelé, or what he represents to me and to soccer in general? Never!”
Rivaldo, who lives in the United States, took a similar path.
“Even if I were in Brazil I am not sure I would have attended the funeral,” Rivaldo said. “I don’t like to pay tributes at that time, I am not against those who do. I met Pelé, I was with him many times and I had the opportunity to honour him during his life.”
Some of the distinguished former Brazilian players attended the funeral Bayern Munich’s Zé Roberto, Manchester City’s Elano and Roma’s Paulo Roberto Falcao. Those three have a connection with Santos.
Except for Santos, few active players and executives of Brazilian clubs attended the funeral. All top flight clubs are in pre-season
Local soccer executives did not suspend play of the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior, a tournament for youngsters that attracts a lot of media attention in the South American nation.