Amidst reports that Brazilian legend Pele has been moved to palliative care, according to reports from his home country. The three-time World Cup winner is regarded as among the greatest players of all time. He underwent surgery to remove a tumour from his colon in 2021 and has been in and out of the hospital since.
Joining in the prayers for the good health of the legend was France and PSG forward Kylian Mbappe, who shared a tweet in solidarity with Pele. 'Pray for the King', the tweet read.
He was not the only young forward to pay his respects to Pele. Mbappe was joined by the Brazilian's countryman Vinicius Junior, who is also in Qatar representing his country at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, like Mbappe. Vinicius shared a story on Instagram where the Brazil fans were holding up banners of Pele. the Real Madrid star wrote ‘Strength, King'.
Pele was hospitalised earlier this week, though his daughter said on Wednesday there was 'no surprise or emergency', with Pele then saying it was a 'monthly visit' in a post on Instagram. However, a report in local media house Folha de Sao Paulo on Saturday said Pele was no longer responding to chemotherapy treatment and is now receiving pain-relieving measures in a palliative end-of-life care ward. The 82-year-old will not be the subject of any invasive treatment or tests.
As a teenager, Pele inspired Brazil to their first World Cup triumph in 1958 and won the tournament with the Selecao twice more in 1962 and 1970.
Last week, when Brazil got their 2022 campaign underway, he sent a message of good luck to the squad on Instagram, saying, 'Today we start writing a new story. No matter the size and tradition of the opponents: we must respect and play each match with the focus of a final. It is important to play beautifully, yes, but it is also essential to leave everything on the pitch.
"Today, we will be more than 200 million hearts beating as one, vibrating with each achievement of our Selecao. I am sending all positive energies to you. I'm sure we'll have a happy ending. God bless you. Bring this trophy home!"
Brazil won Group G despite rounding off the pool stage with a shock 1-0 defeat to Cameroon following wins over Serbia and Switzerland. They face South Korea in the last 16 on Monday.
(With Opta inputs)
