2023-12-10 01:42:02
No player from Brazil’s Santos will wear Pele’s world-renowned number 10 on their shirt while they are in the second division, the club’s new president said on Saturday.
Marcelo Teixeira, who was elected on Saturday as the new president of Santos, said he made the decision as a tribute to the club’s biggest star, who died on December 29 at the age of 81 due to colon cancer.
“Until Santos returns to Serie A we will not play with the number 10 on the shirt. This year, the Brazilian league was named following King Pelé and we will continue with this mission, we will be back in the best division, but until then we will not use this glorious jersey” said Teixeira, who had already been president of the club on two occasions.
Each game this year in the Brazilian league honored Pelé in the 10th minute as a reference to the number he used on his shirt with Santos and the national team.
Teixeira defeated four rivals and finished with 53% of the votes to return to the presidency of Santos on January 1. He had long suggested retiring Pelé’s 10 for good, but the three-time world champion said he didn’t want this to happen.
“This should have been a celebration of democracy, but I don’t feel that this is a time for celebrations,” Teixeira told Santos’ partners following the vote. “We need to be united from now on to have the opportunity to put Santos back on its feet.”
The president of Santos, Andrés Rueda, who did not vote for fear of reprisals, published an apology video on his social networks on Friday. Santos have had a nightmare week since their 2-1 home defeat to Fortaleza on Wednesday, being relegated for the first time in their history.
The club’s fans set cars on fire that night, stormed the Vila Belmiro stadium the next day and on Saturday morning while the vote for president was taking place.
Mired in debt and desperate to find a new idol, Santos faces going to a second division tournament where he will have less income and the competition is very close.
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