EUSEBIO (1942-2014)

Up until 1966, the only Portuguese names the rest of the world were familiar with were great explorers like Vasco Da Gama and Ferdinand Magellan. Indeed it was both Spanish and Portuguese explorers who wrote their names in to the history books for their many voyages and exploits around the globe. This rivalry between the two European neighbours (Portugal and Spain) dates back to the 15th Century. With the Spaniards conquering a large part of the Americas, Portugal's exploits seemed almost dwarfed compared to the great Spanish conquests. It seemed for every Magellan and Da Gama Portugal had, Spain had a Cortes and Pizarro. This was also the case in later years when it came to Football. For the first half of the 20th Century their was no doubt Spain were a stronger Footballing nation than Portgual as the Portuguese had never qualified or been admitted to a FIFA World Cup. That all changed however after the 1966 FIFA World Cup (the first World Cup Portugal featured in).

Having failed to qualify past the group stage, Spain were eliminated early from the 1966 World Cup whereas Portugal came up trumps as winners of their group. After some scintillating performances in the knockout stages, their was one name constantly making headlines; EUSEBIO. After disposing of North Korea 5-3 in the Quarter Finals (4 of them coming from Eusebio), Portugal were then drawn with host nation England in the Semi Final. Although Portugal went down 2-1 in the end, Eusebio's performance could not be forgotten. For a brief period it seemed Portugal might even level the game thanks to a late penalty which Eusebio converted in the 82nd minute of the match. Sadly, for Portuguese fans, this was not to be and Portugal's 1966 World Cup campaign had come to an end after getting within reaching distance of the Final. All was not lost however as, just a few days later, Portugal's Bronze medal victory over the USSR guaranteed the Portuguese would not go home empty handed. Eusebio was certainly not left empty handed as he won the tournament's Golden Boot award having scored 9 goals during the competition.

Although Eusebio is primarily remembered for his performances during the 1966 World Cup, that very tournament was perhaps the catalyst for what was to follow for Portuguese Football. Since 1966, Portugal have produced many great Footballers, the likes of which we may never see again. Players like Luis Figo, Rui Costa and Cristiano Ronaldo are names which have continued the legacy of Portuguese Football. These players almost repeated the 1966 achievement after coach Luiz Felipe Scolari guided Portugal to a 4th place finish at the 2006 World Cup. As for the rivalry between Spain and Portugal, it's still alive and as  strong as ever. In November 2010 Portugal thumped the reigning World Cup champions 4 goals to nil in a friendly match just four months after Spain had won the World Cup in South Africa.18 months later and it was Spain who would come up victors as they defeated the Portuguese 4-2 in a Euro 2012 Semi Final shootout after the game had finished 0-0. So what's next for both of these countries? Only time will tell. When looking back through the years though, time has told one of the greatest football stories ever in Eusebio.


Written by Alex Stilianos.