Rio de Janeiro: Football legend Pele has expressed a desire to see Brazil win the Fifa World Cup for the sixth time in Qatar later this year.
The most successful outfit in the competition’s history, Brazil last won international football’s ultimate prize in Japan and South Korea two decades ago.
“Are you ready for another World Cup? I know I am. I really want to see our team lift this trophy once again!” Pele said in an Instagram post accompanied by an image of the 81-year-old holding football’s most coveted piece of silverware.
This year’s World Cup will be played in Qatar from November 21 to December 18.
Health issues
Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Pele scored a world record tally of 1,281 goals in a 1,363-match professional career that spanned 21 years.
He was capped 91 times for Brazil, scoring 77 international goals and is the only player to have won the World Cup three times — in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
In recent years Pele has suffered from a number of health issues, including complications related to a hip replacement, kidney infections and cancer.
Last week, the former Santos and New York Cosmos forward was discharged from Sao Paulo hospital following treatment for a colon tumour.
