The Great Eusebio

Date added: 2022-10-10

Eusebio, in full Eusebio da Silva Ferreira, byname “the Black Panther”, was born on 25 January 1942 in Lourenco Marques, Portuguese East Africa. He is considered one of the best players of all time. He was celebrated for his long runs through defenders and his deft scoring touch.

Eusebio began his career playing on the Sporting Clube de Lourenco Marques in what was then the Portuguese territory of Mozambique. The Lisbon team Benfica acquired Eusebio on his arrival in Portugal in 1960. The following year he played in his first game with the club. He played as a striker and scored 424 goals in 436 appearanances.

Eusebio was the leading scorer for his country, with 41 goals in 64 matches, until Pauleta equalled and surpassed his record against Latvia on 12 October 2005. He was also the most capped Portuguese player from 1972, until Tamagnini Nene made his 64th cap against Yugoslavia on 2 June 1984 in a friendly match, breaking Eusébio's record during the UEFA Euro 1984 on 20 June against Romania. He made his debut for the Portugal national team against Luxembourg on 8 October 1961, a match his country lost 4–2, with the player scoring his country's first goal in the match.

Eusebio died at his home on 5 January 2014 of heart failure, aged 71.

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